Duality
by TheOrangeFox
Summary: What if there were two Shepard siblings? How would that change things? How are there two in the timeline? What does that mean? Come find that and more out along with MShep/Liara and FShep/Vakarian pairings. Au you for sure. Hopefully a good read.
1. Chapter 1

This is an AU story in which there are two Shepard. For the most part this will be from the Male Shep perspective with a Liara love interest.

Femshep/Varkarian will also be included.

If you like Mass Effect and you like AU stories this is for you. The story will start very similar then start to drastically branch out from there.

As of now I already have ten chapters going through editing for this story that I needed to get out of my system so we will have to see how fast they go up.

Please enjoy and review

* * *

Everything has to start somewhere

The air was thick with the smell of smoke and ash, the colony was dying, or rather someone was murdering it. Gun fire was marked by the bullet holes in the side of the prefab modular homes the colonist had brought with them. When they had first come to this planet following the promise of minerals in such abundance that they would all be rich none of them had considering this outcome. Above the colony the sun was bright, but it was not hopeful for the little collection of buildings. Squads of men could be heard going building to building kicking doors in, shooting, and dragging people out into the street. They were quick; they knew what they were coming for, the colonies themselves.

Their home was a small one room module model with a kitchen and a bed, the bare necessities for being out on the frontier like this, but it had been home for the two of them for so long. Darkness covered the room because the window's shade was drawn to a close to hide those prying eyes from looking directly inside. Mother wanted him to hide, to hide in the crawlspace under the module, but he didn't want to, she was going to fight, he wanted to help. A short argument followed and in the end he relented and did as he was told promising not to come out until he heard a human voice from outside their home calling to him.

"Matt you have to promise to be quiet."

Under the floor he heard them kick the door in, heard them fight with his mother shots ringing out, and there under the panels that kept him hidden he felt her body hit the floor. She was dead and he was left alone in the dark, alone waiting for them to discover his hole.

* * *

Eden Prime was supposed to be one of those colonies that humanity could point to and go, "Yeah we did that," but today it was anything other than something to be proud of. Their three man team had not been on the ground ten minutes and they had already lost a man. Jenkins, Matt had not really had a chance to get to know the soldier yet and he cursed the fact that he was never going to get that chance now. As they rounded a corner some drone just opened fire on them out of nowhere, they were not supposed to be hostile to humans. A load of crock he thought. Probably would have taken down Jane as well, but thankfully with a combined effort of the two of them diving for cover at the same time and his extension of a biotic barrier they had dodged that fate.

After that they lingered nearby the fallen marine and Jane said that they would have to come back for him, no one gets left behind, it was the least they could do.

Now when they rounded corners they were coming around them guns drawn, Jane with her assault rifle and Matt with his pistol leveled cautiously. Moving forward they heard what sounded like gunfire so they glanced at one another then double timed it towards the crack of a rifle; it could have been survivors of that Marine unit that called them back on the Normandy. Couldn't really call it a unit though because only one Marine came dashing out of cover in their direction firing madly back towards where she had come. What was she looking at? Matt ducked in behind some cover peeking his head around while Jane tried to wave down the soldier unsuccessfully.

"Shit Jane we got Geth!" Matt shouted leaving his cover long enough to hurl one of his grenades from his pack, not taking any chances right off the bat against these things. From what he read they went down fairly easy, but they were deadly accurate, made sense to him with them being machines and all.

On the other side of the small path where Jane had taken cover to try and get the soldiers attention his sister hesitated until after Matt had tossed the grenade, then crouched, turned from her cover and fired long enough to stall the three units into eating the grenade that had been thrown.

The Geth went down with a pleasing crackle of their units shorting out from the forced of the explosion and all looked clear, even with that though it took another moment or two before the pair left their cover and headed over to where the fleeing soldier was picking herself up off the dirt. She was a lieutenant, you could tell by the bars on her shoulder, and she looked like she had been through hell with scrapes and burns here and there, but there didn't seem to be anything of real consequence out of place.

"Lieutenant what happened here?" Jane asked motioning back the way she had come scrambling chased by the Geth, "Where is the rest of the unit that was with you?"

Beside her Matt just kept his mouth shut eyes darting at every sound around them high on the adrenaline of seeing his first Geth, he watched out for them while his sister asked the questions, but he didn't jerk around when he heard something as to not alarm them.

The soldier raised a hand up to her helmets faceplate and sighed, seemingly relieved to see some support, "The rest of my unit was wiped out by the Geth, that big ship came out of nowhere, dropped right out of the sky then they came rolling out of it shooting up the place."

Matt felt his sister's ice blue eyes on his back while he was checking back the way they came, they were both thinking it, but they had not said it yet. Why were the Geth here now? They hadn't been seen outside their own space in over a hundred years.

Instead of mentioning that pointless fact right now though, history could be questioned later Jane asked the important question, "We are here to retrieve some sort of Prothean beacon the colonist discovered. Supposed to be somewhere around here do you know where it is?"

The lieutenant didn't hesitated this time, her senses were starting to get back to her now answering quickly on order, "Just up ahead in the main complex is where they had it last, not sure if it's still there now though, the place was swarming with those things the last time I saw it." She sounded out of breath and exhausted, but she gave Jane as crisp a salute she could muster and asked sternly, "Lieutenant Ashley Williams, permission to come along and kick some Geth ass ma'am?"

Jane smiled behind her faceplate and checked the heat sink on her gun before nodding, "You are drafted Lieutenant, but don't start calling me ma'am," she said rolling her shoulders to get a bit of the tense battle stress the armor was causing on her back out, "That there is Matt and I am Jane Shepard. Fall in the back and watch our six."

Eyes never leaving the area behind them Matt just nodded and motioned over to Ashley in acknowledgement until they started moving and she fell in behind him. Then and only when she was glancing behind them as they moved did he open his mouth and greet her extending his free hand that was not on his pistol to the new squadmate.

"Pleasure to meet you Williams," he said under his breath so to not distract his sister upfront that was now moving swiftly into the main compound leading the way. "Glad to see someone made it out of here alive," Matt mentioned remembering that mission on Akuze with his sister where they had lost the rest of their whole squad. So he was glad to at least of found someone.

"Likewise L.T.," she said quickly while trying to keep up with the swift pace of the N7 soldiers.

Jane and Matt both wore the regulation N7 armor they had received at the end of their training. It was an honor to wear the emblem on one's chest, the highest honor outside of a certain metal no one really wanted to get because it always meant you had gone through some shit. Jane's was black with a red stripe down the right arm to the gauntlet of her hand, while Matt's was black with a blue stripe in the same fashion, only he carried nothing but the pistol while his sister had a full complement. Instantly Ashley knew what it meant Matt was, a biotic, probably a strong one if that was all he carried with him.

When they got to the site where the artifact had been discovered it had been moved, of course, but at least they got to take out a few more pesky Geth, Ashley had been especially happy about that. The three of them figured that they must have moved the artifact further into the city; somewhere they could get a shuttle or ship in to pick the thing up perhaps so they continued on. Matt's stomach wished they had turned around there though. A little bit further in past piles of burning debris they found these poles with spikes on the end of them, but worst of all these strange humanoid things were stuck to the top of them. Matt had gone to say something, but just as he did they lowered to the ground and Jane called for them to open fire. It was not a fair fight; the three figures went down easily. Further in they encountered more messed up modular buildings and burning wreckage. What they were not finding very much of were bodies and it worried him, that is until Ash informed him that many of the colonist had made a run for it with only a few holdout staying behind.

While they walked through the ruined colony Matt could feel Jane glancing over her shoulder at him from her point position more than enough times then it took to make sure that they were keeping up. His sister was worried about him, she knew his past, but he was holding it together fine, at least he thought he was, trying to ignore the trembling feeling in his right hand that was wrapped around his sidearm.

A few lucky to be alive colonist pointed them in the direction of the port tram station and they made their way quickly there after telling them to stay inside where they had been hiding, that it would be safe. Hiding where it would be safe Matt thought to himself, yeah that always turned out great.

"I got a Turian here!" Ashley called from up on the tram deck while the other two were finishing off a couple more of those 'Husks' that looked like they might have been people, no one wanted to think about that right now though.

Without a word the other two dashed up the steps and took a look at the fallen Turian, there was no mistake it was the Specter that had come with them on this shake down run, hell of a test to put a new crew through if a Specter was even turning up dead. Swallowing Matt shifted his eyes to the perimeter while Jane crouched down and looked the alien over.

"His name was Nihlis, a Specter, came with us to the planet," she said reaching out to check his Omnitool for any data on who might have caused this. She didn't find anything though, as expected he had died too swiftly to record anything with it. That happens when you take a shot to the back of the head.

Ashley looked grim and hoisted her rifle a bit higher, "Who could have gotten the drop on a Specter ma-…I mean Jane."

Those little slip ups cost her a glare from behind his sisters helmet and a small smile to crack across Matt's lips, had she done it on purpose? Probably not, but they had needed that mistake to break the mood settling in on them

Again they had found a fallen comrade in Nihlis and again they had to move on, they would come back for him his sister said again, they would come back for everyone including Ash's unit. No one got left behind. Up ahead there was some resistance on the tram, but with a combination of well-placed bullets and biotic power the three of them made it to the controls and started the thing up. Ash pushed in the needed code in and the tram rumbled to life and shot out across the tracks towards the port. They could take a breath if only for a moment. Near the railing on the far side Matt looked out across the burning colony resembling that time so many years ago and he tried to push it from his mind.

"You good Matt?" Jane asked the concern hardly concealed in her voice. They were N7 they were supposed to be the best of the best, she didn't want to cut him down in front of this new lieutenant, but keeping her squad running was a higher priority than his feelings.

Turning back around Matt stowed his pistol and shot a look in the direction of his sister, "All good Red, just thinking about what this place would have been like to visit is all." Reaching into the small medical pack he had strapped to one of his thighs he pulled out a medi-gel container while they had a minute and motioned to Ash, "Come over here you have a nasty cut on your arm let me close it up while we have a sec."

The three of them fell into a comfortable silence while the traveled on the tram after that, the issue resolved Jane only had to worry about why these Geth were attacking the colony and why they wanted this artifact.

When the tram finally started to pull into the far station they instantly came under fire. Matt threw up a barrier bubble to cover that first burst of fire waiting until their guns over heated, then they ran for cover. Unfortunately that cover just happened to be beside an active bomb that looked like it was strong enough to wipe out half the colony. Jane didn't know squat about tech so the quick choice was made for Matt to hunker over the thing and work about shutting it off while under fire.

"Fuck," he cursed a bullet snapping at the platform just beside his feet while he tried to disarm the bomb, "You could at least try firing in their direction guys!" he shouted over his shoulder while tearing out the needed circuit board. "There I got it," he said scooting back under the cover of the wall they were all hiding behind trying to catch his breath and calm his hands.

Jane poked her head around the corner of the cover and noticed there were groups of Geth clustered around objects on the far side of the terminal. There were more bombs. Inwardly she curse herself just like her brother had just done far louder and ducked back in where she could talk to them.

"Bad news," she started.

"Don't say there are more Geth coming in," Ash stated.

"Or more bombs," Matt added helpfully while pulling out his holstered pistol.

Jane just laughed and nodded in response checking her gun to make sure it was not going to lock up on her a few seconds after they broke cover, "You got it, more Geth for Ashley, and more tech for you to smash Matt. I know how you love doing that."

It might have sounded almost pleasant with the way she had worded it, but the constant rattle of gunfire against their cover kind of killed that feeling pretty fast. Perfect Matt thought checking his gun in much the same was his sister had and holding up three fingers with his free hand a moment later.

The three of them looked at one another to make sure they were all ready, waited for a lull in the fire that finally came, and then broke cover right away.

"Three!" they all shouted skipping the countdown and running off in different directions.

At first the Geth were caught by surprise and they didn't know where to shoot right away, that cost them at least four units cut down by the expert squad, but that still left nearly ten standing for them to deal with before they could get their hands on those explosives. Like they had done a hundred times before the brother and sister pair fought in tandem, lift an enemy there, shoot one out of the air there. They hardly slowed down as they descended on the group of Geth trying to fend them off, Williams in the back trying to keep up between firing bursts of her assault rifle to try and cover them. Now across the bridge between the platforms Jane took some cover while Matt hit a unit with a biotic throw that sent it hard enough into the wall to dislodge its extremities. Behind them Ash slid into cover and the three of them fell silent waiting for the telltale sound of those metal feet approaching. They couldn't wait long though because of the explosives ticking away a few meters from the three of them so in the end Matt broke cover and started to work on the bombs while the other two kept their eyes peeled.

"Same as the others," he said to himself thankfully and worked quickly with his knife to work the first plate free on the bomb so that he could rip the required circuit board out.

"Think we got all of them?" Williams asked her eyes strained with how determined she was attempting to scan the area around them.

Jane just pated Ash on the shoulder and the two of them moved to the last bomb in the port so that they could cover Matt. In all that time no more units showed up so that must have been all they had brought with them. Or so Jane had figured that there were no more around at least. Continuing on they headed down a ramp to the port area and that's when they found it, the artifact they had been sent in for. It was crackling with an energy that did not look particularly good so they kept their distance, at least at first.

Matt pulled away and lifted a hand up so that he could hail the Normandy, "Normandy this is ground team, we have the artifact need pic-."

He stopped mid-sentence when out of the corner of his eyes he saw his sister walking up to the device in some sort of daze, she didn't seem to be walking normally at least. Quickly he dropped his hand and brushed Ash aside who had yet to notice what was happening. Gripping the back of his sisters armor he tried to yank her back, but couldn't. Matt's eyes widened in shock, he was not the biggest guy in the military, but he should have been able to at least drag his sister around with his own strength. Today for some reason he was going to need a lot more, that device he guessed. Gritting his teeth he forced his will into the biotic amps installed into his body after it became known he had the skill as a child and he forced the power into his arm that was trying to pull back Jane. Almost instantly like a rubber band snapping she came loose from what was holding her and was flung, stumbling back into the arms of a waiting Lieutenant Williams.

If only that had been it though, the device seemingly upset it had lost its prize took hold of his form with some unseen forced and lifted him from his feet. Matt struggled against the hold he felt and even tried to use a biotic jump to get away, but his body just flared that bright blue color then faded as he was subdued. It was then that he felt a presence like something was crawling into his mind and he was thrown into a momentary darkness quickly replaced with a series of quick sights, sounds, and smells that he couldn't help to keep up with. It felt like someone else's memories, he had experience with that, but this time everything was broken, fragmented, like something was terribly wrong with the person that was sharing them with him. Just as quickly as they flashed they stopped and the artifact released him. Vaguely he could hear the Prothean relic overload and blow up beside him followed the feel of someone yanking on his light armor and shouting into his ear. The voice was faint and garbled though so he couldn't make out what was being said, but he was sure that it had to be his sister. Matt couldn't answer though overcome with the process he had just gone through and he passed out in her arms.

* * *

Matt had woken up with one hell of a hangover in the med bay after that and everyone was there waiting to fire questions off at him. What happened? Why did he jump in and pull her out?! Was he ok? Every question had its own connotation and the Marine had tried to take them all in stride while nursing what had to of been one of his worse headaches to date. After the doctor had given him something to help relieve the pain Captain Anderson asked that she clear the room and told him that they had carried him back to the ship after he passed out. That's when he found out that they had a face to go behind the attack, Saren, a council Specter. When they sent units out to retrieve the bodies of the fallen they had come across a dock worker that had seen the Turian shoot his friend, or at least they had looked friendly before that he had said. What was a council Specter doing behind this attack?

Jane asked if it was possible the council was behind the whole thing, but Anderson quickly dismissed that idea, he knew Saren, knew what he was really like. It was far more likely sadly though that he was actually behind the attack on his own. Saren hated humans. Matt was fine with that, after today he wanted to rip the ol bird limb from limb so if he hated humans that was fine with him. That's when they asked him about the beacon, something he had been dreading actually talking about. He told them about the way it seemed to grab Jane, how he had thrown her out of the way to try and help her, only to be pulled in himself. Told them about how after being lifted up the device had forced its way into his mind and thrust images before his eyes. No that had not been the right word to use, memories he had said, but Anderson looked doubtful.

His sister was not having any of that though; she said that if that's what he saw that's what had happened, Matt doesn't lie. Thankful for that Matt had just shot his sister a smile and they listened as Anderson said that they would have to return to the Citadel and inform the council of what had happened, of what Saren had done to Eden Prime. The biotic Vanguard had joked and asked if he really thought telling them he had a dream was going to change anything. The captain looked uneasy himself at that prospect, but he said they would need to hear everything. If anything they needed their support to go after Saren.

So they went to the Citadel the centerpiece of Citadel space where all the races came together to attempt to get along, he always said though it hardly ever ended up that way. The first time he had come there was when he was just a kid; no more than fourteen and the place had seemed so grand with the flashing lights, and the bustling people everywhere. Matt had never seen so many people in one place and it had left him in awe. Grown with years under his belt now though the place just left him feeling uncomfortable and cramped without room to move around because of just how many people there were. Leave him on a rock of a planet with no one around for shore leave, that's all he ever wanted. It wasn't all bad though, it was the only place where you could find human novels from Earth imported out to council space, on paper that was. Matt liked classic SciFy oddly enough if you went by his day job, but it helped him unwind.

Something he was going to desperately need to do once they got back to the ship after the beating they took from the council. Like always humans came to them with a problem and the three represented races brushed them aside, of which humans were not a part of, they were to rash they always said. The council had said they lacked the evidence to bring in Saren on charges and Jane had yelled at them for the way the Turian councilor had mocked Matt's "Visions" he said with finger air quotes.

Afterward Jane wanted to follow up on a lead with a Turian named Garrus that had been looking into the Saren case on the C-sec end that had turned up blank, Matt just wanted to find a place to get a drink. It had been one of those days, no scratch that, weeks. His sister seemed to understand and she told him to take himself to get something, not to drink himself under the table however if they needed him, and they would track down this lead.

That's how the Biotic Marine ended up in a place called….something Den…he didn't really take the time to glance at the sign on his way in, a helpful keeper he had asked about a drink had just silently pointed. Gah those things were strange. The place was dimly lit, had patrons spaced about at tables and at the bar, and entertainment in the form of dancers plying their trade. Matt however just sat on a stool near the bar and nursed his whiskey teasing a bit of ice between sips. It was not exactly his sort of place, there were far more aliens than humans about, but of the humans he did see he saw that some of them were off duty C-sec. The owner probably had them on retainer or something to make sure that he was never bothered when he made his more shady moves.

Matt didn't care about that though and just glanced at his Omni once more between drinks to make sure that he had not missed a page from his sister.

Behind him near the back door that led to the room that said Management over it a small argument had started. The sound caught his attention as well as the attention of a few of the other patrons in the joint. There was a very large Krogan talking down to a very small Quarian, or at least proportionally to the picture he was looking at, but she was having none of it brushing his hand away as quick as it came.

"Tell the Broker that he had better come alone or the deal is off!" She stated confidently and for a second it looked like the Krogan was just going to bite her head off, but the large fellow must have been instructed differently so he drew back and tapped a few times on his Omnitool then said something to the alien.

It must have been what she wanted to hear to because she turned on her heel and made for the exit. The Quarian had to come past where he was sitting perched at the bar with his drink and Matt just flashed a quick smile. Quarians were alright by him, they always got a bad rap in the news about being criminals and squatters, truthfully the ones he had met were some of the best tech minds he had ever met. She must have noticed his acknowledgement because she tilted her head just slightly in his direction right before passing him to head out the door.

Matt just turned back to the bar and listened to the Turian bartender attempted something that might be considered small talk while he enjoyed his drink.

An hour or so later his Omni tool started to make a terribly annoying sound, made more so by the fact that he knew it meant his little break was over. Like he was told he had only had one drink then some sort of Asari non-alcoholic fruit punch for the rest of his stay, not too sure if he liked it or not really. When he brought up the notification it informed him that there was an individual nearby that had information on Saren that would incriminate him in the eyes of the council. Quickly he paid his tab with a little extra for the patient tender for letting him sit so long drinking only juice and tapped his Omni to bring up the map while he made his way out of the bar. The note had said that there could be someone coming after the information and for him to be careful, they had doubled back to the ship at some point to pick up their armor, Matt was just in a pair of jeans and his N7 hoodie without a weapon other than his amps shackled to his nerves.

Reading the map carefully he noted the dot that showed where his sister was at, was currently moving to the destination, then where the meet up point was. Blinking he looked up off down the direction of the alley that was on the map. It was right here? Shit. Matt started off at a sort of jog in that direction keeping an eye out of a C-sec officer that might be of some help if there was indeed trouble. Of course they were never there when it came to helping you. They never were it seemed.

When he reached the door that had the meeting place marked on the map Matt hesitated eyeing the marker that was moving towards him, but it was still a minute or two out. Wait or go? Slamming his hand against the panel to open the door the brown haired soldier, just past length of regulation, stepped into the alley, or rather stumbled.

"Hey….yoooou!" he shouted attempting to slur his speech as best he could while stumbling down the stairs using one of the people passing there for momentary support to do so.

It was the Quarian from before! Quickly he pushed that from his mind and tried not to give away his surprise. This wouldn't work if they made him. Two Salarian mercs and a Turian from the looks of it, all for one little Quarian girl, distasteful.

Angrily the Turian tried to get between him and the girl, "Hey buddy move along, sleep of that drink somewhere else."

Behind him under that visor recognition flashed across the Quarian's face, it was the man from the bar. What was he doing here? This was bad, no one was supposed to interrupt the meeting, first the Broker seemed to of double crossed her and now she was being stalked by a human with an enviro suit fetish.

Grumbling Matt stumbled closer to them and put a hand on the Turian's shoulder whispering drunkenly into his ear, "He…hey….hey…this one promised me a," he coughed loudly on the man's shoulder causing him to break contact and step away from the both of them, "a dance." Matt finished as if that was at all helpful to their current situation.

With the draw of a sidearm the Turian signaled that he had enough of the drunk saying gravely, "Move along…"

The threat was real and Matt felt that, but he also heard the sound of the alley door opening behind him. Though he couldn't turn he had a feeling that it was his sister and Ashley coming through that door. Well it had better be because he was about to have to make a move or end up filled with holes. Normally he might have been able to pull some sort of biotic trick out of his ass to take down the three, but with the Quarian to keep safe he only really had one option.

"HEY!" he nearly shouted reaching out for the suit of the Quarian seeming to ignore the pistol leveled towards him, "How about that dance?" He said grinning devilishly that at least he didn't have to fake, that was his usual excited smile.

Recoiling away from his hand she continued to try and get a hold of the situation, "I think you are mista-"

Matt lunged and took a firm grip of the girls left forearm, "Oh no, you promised!" the soldier tightened his grip just slightly as she instinctually tried to pull right away, "You and I are going to get down." This time he spoke perfectly clear causing the Quarian to tilt her head in confusion. He wasn't drunk? Behind him the distinct sound of an assault rifle being brought to bear caught his attention and Matt shouted, "DOWN!"

With a yelp from her he yanked the both of them down into a crouch just as the gunfire started all around them. Matt took a grazing shot to the side of his abdomen before he could use his free hand to project a small dome over the two of them. Bullets were absorbed by the field fruitless in their attempts to get to their target, but Matt winced with each impact because of the slice in his side. The fight ended, the three men were lying on their individual faces, and he was able to drop the barrier.

Falling back onto his ass he swore again, something Jane had been trying to whip out of him ever since they were kids, but dammit he had been shot and he was pretty sure it had come from their side.

The group that had come to save the two of them came running down the stairs and surrounded the both of them. Looking up Matt held his side and blinked surprised when he saw his sister with Ashley as well as a Krogan and a Turian in tow. The Turian was probably Garrus, but he was not sure about the Krogan, he did look mildly familiar from somewhere.

"Which one of your jerks shot me?!" he asked sarcastically while motioning to the grazed bullet wound in his side that probably came from them.

They all looked at one another and it was Ashley that looked the guiltiest for the act, but it was Jane that spoke for her reaching down to help him up with medi-gel already in hand.

"Crossfire from one of those Salarians, you are getting slow brother," she said as evenly as she could while trying not to laugh at the fact that he had actually taken a shot from one of their own people. Helpfully she did however at least apply some medi-gel that helped with the pain, "There we go. Just one more scar for the collection Matt." Stepping back after making sure he could stand on his own she motioned to the new comers, "This is Garrus as I am sure you have guessed," the Turian with blue facial markings and an imposing looking rifle nodded his way, "And this is Wrex. He helped us track down the info."

Wrex took a long lingering look over the human, where had he seen him before?

"Ah, you were that human with the fruity drink back in Cora's Den earlier weren't you?" he asked with a hearty laugh, "No wonder you took a shot from your own people."

Matt shot a look at Jane and Ashley, but they were already laughing, "I will have you know that I was on duty, I couldn't have too many of my usual fair."

While he was getting patched up and defending his manhood the Quarian had just stood there quietly watching the exchange not sure when they were going to get around to speaking to her. She was not sure who they were, but they had just stormed in and saved her so they at least deserved her thanks.

"Um…," the vocal processor on the front of her helmet lit with her words, "Excuse me?"

That quiet voice cut through Matt trying to explain why you can't drink heavily on duty to a Krogan and caught all their attention.

The Quarian nervously messed with the glove of her right hand while watching their reactions, "Thank You for saving me, but…what why are you doing here?"

Stepping out of the group Jane set a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder and smiled warmly in a friendly way, "It was our pleasure," she said while glancing back at her brother that was milking a SCRAPE on his side then looked back, "Some more than others I would guess. My name is Jane Shepard, that's my brother Matt and Ashley Williams back there," mentioning everyone in turn. Jane hoped she had overheard the other two's names because she skipped them and got right to the point, "We got information that you had something on Saren and the attack on Eden Prime, but that you were going to be double crossed. We need that data."

She seemed to relax somewhat when Jane set that hand on her shoulder, visibly relaxing her form at just the touch, "I think I have what you need. Giving it to you is the least I could do, you did save me after all." Hesitating she looked over all of them one at a time letting her gaze fall back to the woman that was addressing her, "My name is Tali."

Jane just smiled and gave the girl's suit a little squeeze then started to urge her to the exit, they needed to get this in front of the council right away. They all headed for the door, up the stairs and out, leaving only Garrus to pause looking back. The alleyway was far bloodier then it was before they came into it, a mess.

"I should….call someone about this," the Turian C-sec officer intoned already dreading the headache of paperwork this was going to bring his desk.


	2. Chapter 2

Well I already had this one pretty well edited so I thought I would put it up as well.

I was not expecting to post again so soon though.

Please enjoy

Of course I own none of Bioware's works.

* * *

A fresh break

Metals had never really meant anything to Jane, she and her brother had gotten their fair share, but this one, this one was different. She turned the new emblem over and over in her right hand searing every bit of it into the recesses of her mind. Specter. The first human to join their ranks and it was her. When they took the information Tali had given them the council could not ignore that Saren was behind the attack on Eden prime any longer so they had revoked his Specter status. To her surprise though a push was made to give her the title to go after him. The argument had been to send a whole fleet, but in the end they had settled for just her. It was unsettling to think that the council thought she could get the job done when a whole fleet of ships couldn't. That she was so above and beyond the call of what it was to be a solider that she deserved the post. It was a great honor they had said, but she was wondering without speaking allowed if it would turn out to be a curse.

Afterwards when she told her brother about the meeting and what had happened he was overjoyed for her, said they should celebrate. Jane wondered if that was how Matt really felt. Her brother had been in the military just as long, had just as many medals, and had seen just as much action. Why not him instead of her? Matt had just as much hand in bringing in the information on Saren that she did, if anything without him they wouldn't have it at all with how he saved the little Quarian. The sister knew the answer though; it had always been like this, her brother looking after the two of them. They might not be blood related, but that had never made a difference to Matt. All through basic when she slipped up or forgot to do something he was there with a wisecrack or a bigger breach of the code of conduct making himself the center of attention. There was a reason he never took promotion ahead of her and that his file was twice her size. It was not because commendations were piling up either.

Not wanting to wear the insignia just yet she stuffed it into one of her pants pockets and leaned in against the side of the makeshift ring.

"When you said celebrate I thought you meant something like drinks, are you sure about this?" she asked raising a sisterly brow up at Matt who was leaned against the ropes.

Down in the Alliance section of the docking area the guy's drug together a makeshift boxing ring with what they could every Thursday night and who ever wanted to go at it had their chance. Technically it was against regs for such a thing to be going on, but the higher ups tended to look the other way because it was an easier for the Marines to work out their issues, tonight though Matt had just drug his sister down here because he wanted to have some fun.

"This is celebrating Red, gotta blow off some steam every once in a while," he said grinning back down to her while he had his gloves helped onto him. "Tomorrow we ship out and who knows when will be the next chance we will be back. Have to enjoy the off time while I can."

His word cut through her like a knife, she had not told him yet, the orders for her to command the Normandy had come through for her, but Matt was going to be reassigned to the cruiser Orion to lead his own squad of Marines. Something anyone in his shoes would have been excited to hear, Matt on the other hand was going to be upset. Jane wanted to tell him she had just not had the chance yet.

"Matt about tomorrow!" she shouted trying to get over the sound of everyone starting to crowd in and cheer right when the bell was rung.

He just pushed off the ropes and waved a hand at her, it could wait a minute more she guessed. The Marine on the other side had about forty on Matt and looked like he knew how to use it. She was never sure why he picked guys that were always bigger than him. Once they met in the middle of the ring they started to circle like wolves sizing up one another. Matt started with a short jab for little effect only to be countered by one of his opponents own. Her brother easily sidestepped that and started a flurry of punches back in the other direction. The two of them danced around the little ring throwing at one another over and over again while the equally small crowd that had gathered cheered them on.

Jane was offered a drink by one of the men there watching and he looked disappointed when she turned him down. This little corner of the docks was out of sight behind some storage boxes so the sound of the bodies striking one another hardly carried, even the voices of the crowd probably didn't even reach the door. She looked back just in time to see her brother take a vicious body shot to the side that had him reeling back towards the ropes.

Quickly she stepped up and gripped the bottom rope so she could speak loud enough to be heard over the crowd, "Come on Matt put him down I am hungry. I thought you were N7" She might not always agree with what her brother did for fun, but she was not about to stand there and not support him.

Up in the ring Matt shot a glance over his shoulder in the direction of where the voice came then rolled to the right out of the way of a shot that probably would have caught him blind on his left eye. They traded a few more blows back and forth without one seeming to want to give a big blow.

Frustrated she just shook her head and shouted, "Seriously?!"

Matt gritted his teeth digging them into the rubber of the guard he was wearing waiting for his opening. His opponent went for another left hook and he had what he was waiting for. Lifting his right he blocked the strike while in the same motion stepping in so he could smash the heel of his hand into the side of the man's head causing him to slip into a daze for a fraction of a second. That was when the biotic threw his left across the man's cheek bone with a swiftness that surprised his attacker. He had been standing opposite his normal stance the whole fight. Switching back to southpaw on the fly like that allowed him to draw his opponent into a bad combo so that Matt could counter and leave him passed out flat on his back. Panting for breath he turned and leaned against the top rope while the small crowd shouted in a mix of cheers and boos. Grinning ear to ear almost Matt brushed the back of the glove against his lips and shrugged down to his sister.

"Still want to eat something? I saw a good sushi place before coming down here," Matt said through labored breaths.  
Climbing down out of the ring Marines came up to him so that they could pat him on the back and shake his hand, but thankfully after a few minutes he was able to get the gloves off and put something on a cut above his right eye.

"How are you going to explain the cut Matt? And you hate sushi." Jane asked arms crossed over her chest sure that her brother tried to get under her skin like this on purpose on a usual bases.

His hair was a mess, all out of place, but with a run of his fingers the short brown hair was standing up in the usual spiky manor that he kept it. For being in a fight he only looked a little worse for wear sweating and turning red in a few places he had taken some shots. On his left shoulder Matt had his military information. Name, blood type, religion, that type of stuff tattooed right onto the skin. It was something most of the N7 did when they graduated, Jane had passed. Across his left breast the only other ink he had was a single word, a name, Shala. Jane had asked about why he got the name in the past and he had told her that it was a bad girlfriend mistake getting it in the first place. Getting rid of the things these days was not nearly as hard as it was back in the day though; she guessed there was more to it than that so she had never pushed it. Other than his bit of ink he had the normal set of scars you would expect from a seasoned solider here and there most prominently one that cut across the left side of his jaw narrowly. It was the biotic amps being put in that she was always reminded of when she saw the straight line scars on his body, down his arms from the neck and down the backs of his legs for placement. Matt still got the headaches, but of what she had read herself it could be a lot worse for him.

"Yeah, but you love the stuff for some strange reason, its uncooked you know? Not rational and we are celebrating so let's head over." Matt got up and drug back on his shirt while he was talking about hating perfectly reasonable food, but it was a conversation they had many times in the past, he was only joking.

"Matt I need to tal-," she tried to get out about the orders for tomorrow just as he wrapped one of his strong arms around her shoulders to be guided towards the door.

"Yeah yeah we can talk on the way come on," he said grinning holding her close.

She could put it off till he had something to eat.

* * *

"I am afraid we need you elsewhere son," Anderson said for the third time trying to get through to the kid just what the situation was, "That's just the way it is, not my call I am afraid. If it was up to me I would put you on her boat."

The two of them were standing on the dock where the Normandy was parked and had been for the better part of twenty minutes. When he had arrived to the ship that evening the orders had been there waiting for him just like Jane had said they would be. He couldn't believe this, his sister becomes a Specter and is about to take a ship out to track down possibly the most dangerous person Matt could imagine off hand and they wanted to stick him on a security cruiser on babysitting runs?!

Gritting his teeth Matt couldn't take any more of this political military doublespeak, "Permission to speak freely Sir?"

Anderson let out a sigh, had he not already been doing that? When he had shown Jane the orders she had informed him that it was going to be hard, but she had not said that he would be this insistent.

"Of course Matt."

Turning away from the Captain Matt looked out towards where the barrier kept the vacuum of space from killing all of them then kicked his duffle that had been left there on the dock by his feet.

"You have to figure something out for me Sir, I need to go with her," he tried with a tired sound to his voice and it was not because of the beating he took the past evening, even if his right eye had blackened up nicely he was just frustrated.

Frowning Anderson shook his head, "She will be fine Matt, she can look out for herself you know."

Snapping his attention back to the experienced Captain Matt curbed the first thing that he wanted to say and responded, "That is not what concerns me Captain," he said shaking his own head and looking troubled.

"So what is it?"

Green eyes took in the whole of the side of the Normandy while Matt thought about how he wanted to respond to that. Throughout his career he had followed his sister around, pulling her ass out of fires, and supporting her when she needed it. When they joined up their Father had been against it, he didn't want them dying out in some deep corner of space he guessed, but mom had just chastised him saying it was an honor to serve. She had served since she was eighteen and now she was a Captain just like Anderson was here. Matt had promised his father when he was taken aside just before shipping out that he would keep an eye on his sister and he had. That time on Akuze had been horrible, but and she might not admit it, he had drug her out of that hell storm kicking and screaming. No this was different, when he looked at those letters that spelled out NORMANDY Matt just got a feeling like he needed to stay aboard.

"I….I can't explain it Sir, but I need to be on that boat," Matt said meeting the eyes of the man that he had come to find to be a mentor while he had been under his command. Anderson had seen the wild screw up that was described in his file and he had trusted him, Matt could never thank him enough for that.

"That's a Specter boat now Shepard only specially assigned Alliance personnel and those few specialists your sister deems needed come along," Anderson said never breaking eye contact to the Marine noticing that the sense of determination had an edge to it that was not total about family.

Without thinking the wild kid within Matt reared his head, "Then I resign."

You probably could have dropped a grenade right there on the walkway and neither one of them would have noticed it. Anderson was trying to process what he had just heard and Matt was struggling with if he wanted to take it back, did he mean that?

"Mat-,"

"You heard me," he quickly followed up with.

Matt Shepard joined the military as soon as possible alongside his sister, went through basic with minor incident and was now an N7 officer. When they wanted to augment his biotic abilities with experimental amps he had signed the in case of death waiver without hesitation, he wanted to be the best. There might be only a handful of biotics in the whole of the Alliance that could do what he could on the field. Twelve years, every four signing the reenlistment papers without question.

"Are you sure about this Matt," Anderson asked worry easily showing behind those eyes. He had known he and his sister for some time, had checked up on them while they were in N7 training so that he could be sure that he was going to have first shot at having them for service. No one took pride in serving more than Matt with the exception of his sister.

Hesitantly those green eyes darted away feeling those large block letters that adorned the side of the ship like a force pulling him. Reaching up he tucked his hand in under the duty shirt he was wearing so that he could lift free the dog tags he had worn since the first day of basic up over his head.

"I am certain Sir," he said taking a step forward so that he could extend his hand holding out the tags for his now former Commander. The look in his eyes showed that he was still torn with the decision, but the way he said it made it known that he was not about to back out now.

Calloused fingers took the metal tags from the young biotic's outstretched hand and looked at them. They were just like any other Marines tags, scraped up a bit here and there with ware, but a perfect copy. Still though when he took them from Matt they felt terribly heavy, "Matt Shepard," he started leaving time for himself to be stopped, but when he was not he respectfully kept his subordinates gaze and finished, "You are hereby formally dishonorably discharged from the Alliance Military."

Without reluctance Anderson stepped into a salute that Matt mirrored on his side then it was over. They were no longer brothers in arms, no longer on the same side, but Anderson was not done with him just yet.

The Captain dropped his salute and stuffed the tags into the front pocket on his shirt so that he could step forward and extend a hand to one of the best young officers he had the chance to command.

Matt smiled slightly, an expression that showed his thanks in the moment just taking the offered gesture, "Thank you Sir."

"Don't you Sir me anymore boy," Anderson grinned giving a firm shake getting serious with him one last time, "You ever want these back, you know right where to come for them son." He offered stepping back patting the front of the pocket that now held his military past.

They stood there for a time exchanging a knowing smile. In the end Matt had gotten what he wanted, he always did one way or another, but this time it had cost him dearly.

"If you excuse me there is a Turian with an attitude problem that needs a beating."

"Give him one for me."

"Honored to."

* * *

Around him the air filtering system rushed across his form in an attempt to decontaminate the airlock of the Normandy. Matt had just picked up his duffle tossed it over his shoulder and stepped inside. This thing always took forever he though, was the Citadel not clean enough? The inner lock finally released the security and slid open hitting him with a rush of air as the inner atmosphere pressurized the lock. Jane was standing right there in her uniform and she didn't look happy.

"How could you do that!" Jane shouted already starting off at a level that Matt was certain the few down in engineering were going to be able to hear.

Suddenly he was not sure he wanted to step out of the airlock after all. His sister was red in the face and her equally red locks were all falling out of the braid she kept them in while on duty. If the anger was not directed at him Matt might have thought that she looked funny, not right this second though.

"They were not going to let me aboard Jane," he said letting out a sigh knowing that it was not going to be enough to get her off of his back. Matt tried to look away from her and adjust the strap on his pack, but he found himself unable to get out from under those furious blue hues.

"Stop following me around Matt this is just like the last time you trashed a promotion. I gave you the commendation and thought that you would be happy and what did you do? Huh? Do you even remember?!"

Together they both spoke, "burned it." Although each had varying tones to how it was said.

The younger brother, if only slightly he always spoke up about that, reached up and rubbed the back of his neck shaking his head, "It's done Jane."

Jane stepped forward and slammed her hand down on the airlock command button and the inner door slid shut behind her. Face to face she fumed inches from him with a glare he had not seen since they were kids.

"I don't care what you promised our Father I want you to stop, just stop Matt."

Green eyes locked with blue and the younger sibling pressed a pointed index finger into the crisp uniform of the military officer speaking in a near growl now, "Jane this isn't about you. It's not always about you!" he shouted joining her now that he airlock was closed, "It's about this ship," he snarled back at her angry voice she had been using and pointed away past her to where she had come. "It's about this mission. I belong here."

Momentarily she seemed to be trying to figure out why he had suddenly done this, a second later she swung, but she missed. "Is this about the Specter thing? Are you jealous Matt?"

Stepping away out of her personal space Matt grimaced shaking his head at least she sounded like she was starting to calm down, "Jealous? Of what? You know I don't give a shit about stuff like that." No that wasn't it he thought, truthfully he didn't know why himself just yet.

Jane stepped in following the step he had taken back trying to understand. She tried to comfort him with a hand placed on his back resting their understandingly, or the best she could in the confusion. Before she could say anything to try and help figure out his problem though Matt spoke up again.

"I need to be here," he said quietly, almost begging, it was not a voice he had ever heard him use growing up together and Matt would not meet her eye.

It wasn't about Jane, it wasn't about their family, and she wondered if it was even about Saren himself. The Specter looked behind her over to the airlock inner door release and pressed the bright red button that would open it up. This was not over, she wanted to know the truth, she wanted to know why he wanted this so badly, but for now she wouldn't be his sister if she denied his request.

"Welcome aboard," she said gently as if she was holding something fragile in her hands.

Matt slowly turned back around to face her and tried his best to set his jaw adjusting that duffle of his again.

"So we got any leads?" he said clearing his throat trying to change the subject.

Jane turned over her left hand and brought up her Omni tool data so that her brother could see for himself, "A few, but we are going to pick up a scientist that might be connected somehow first."

They both read over the data that was scrolling by until finished, there were a few other choices, but Matt was sure she had picked that one for a reason so he didn't ask. Instead he just read the name aloud then shrugged.

"Dr. Liara T'Soni."

* * *

"Have I mentioned Jane that Turians don't much like the heat?" Garrus offered while they finished sliding out of the Mako tank, "Or sitting in the back of tanks? We tend to get car sick."

Matt couldn't help himself and smiled behind his faceplate, he was going to get along with this one. They had only two days transit to get to the volcanic planet and he had spent most of it with a migraine, typical for him from time to time with his amps so he was in the med bay. His sister had passed the time making sure everyone was settling in alright and getting to know the specialist that had come aboard like Garrus. The Turian was a now ex- C-sec officer with a pension of wanting to bend the rules so it was not much of a stretch to see why he and the biotic might get along. From what he said he was a crack shot with the impressive rifle he carried as well, but he had yet to see him use it firsthand.

After the two day stint using FTL travel and the relays they got to Therum. It was a hot planet ongoing major geothermal change with all the volcanic activity about. When their helmsmen Joker had told them that the signal for the expedition site was coming from the base of one of them Matt had thrown up his hands. Seriously? Ashley had wanted to come along with the ground team, but Jane wanted to know a bit of what her specialist could take so Garrus had come with. After dropping in the heavy Mako tank they had endured his sister's terrible driving skills for a good couple miles because the gas made it impossible to land any closer. Matt had not the chance to say it, but he felt a car sick like the Turian.

Jane was leading them up a slope towards the mining facility that was there target, evidently they had come across some ruins, phoned home, and this archeologist had come out. This Dr. T'Soni.

"Next time we have an away mission I will make sure it's on a nicer planet Garrus, just for you," Jane called back the sound of her sarcastic tone clearly heard over their helmet communicators.

A couple minutes later they made it to the mining complex, nothing special, some heavy equipment, pop up shelters and that's about it. There were a few light mechs, currently dormant sitting near the entrance to the mine. Security Matt guessed.

"Shouldn't there be more people around?" Matt asked once they made it over to the large reinforced door that led down into the mines. So far they had not made contact with anything so he left his pistol at his side, Jane and Garrus both had their rifles out at the ready though.

Jane messed with the panel, that controlled the large door, for a couple second before becoming frustrated and smacking it with the palm of her hand. Behind her Garrus and Matt shared a look and tried not to laugh.

Garrus stepped up and gently pushed her aside, "Let me take a look, these things always freeze up when they get a bit of dust in them."

This was funny because there was a perpetual stream of the shit flowing around them it felt like in the wind, lucky they had their sealed suits, Matt hated sand.

"Gah…yeah thanks Garrus see if you can get it," Jane stepped away and brought up the mission information on her Omni while her brother watched the eruptions in the distance, "Says here that it's just the doctor and a handful of mechs, pretty risky if you ask me to come out alone to a planet like this."

"Al…most….," Garrus said to himself while twisting a wire," There we go."

The large door opened at a pace that could only be described as slow and revealed a lengthy dark tunnel down into the planet. Looking down into it they would need their flashlights, you couldn't see passed about ten meters. There were lights up above that the lined the tunnel, but it looked like the exposure of time and the sand on the planet had done most of them in; only one every so often was giving off a faint light.

Matt crouched down and lifted a small stone from the ground and stepped up between the other two that were looking down the steep walkway into the mines. With only a bit of effort he tossed the rock over hand down into the shaft listening to the sound as it bounced over and over until coming to a soft landing somewhere below.

Cringing he turned from this glancing from Jane then Garrus so he could ask, "….So…who wants to be the first to go into the creepy ass mine on the deserted planet…?"

Jane hoisted her rifle up to lean against her shoulder with one hand while she considered her options. If they all went down and something happened she doubted that they were going to get their radios out of the dense rock. Someone would have to stay up top to relay anything that might need to be sent back to the Normandy.

"Garrus stick around the door and make sure nothing comes in after us," she ordered motioning Matt to follow her while starting down the tunnel.

Matt hesitated just long enough to hear Garrus wish him luck then he headed in after his sister reaching up to flip on his helmet flashlight to help illuminate the dark walkway. It was a long way down and they were not in any real rush to slip and break their necks so their took it slow. On the way down they passed a few storage boxes that the miners must have been in the process of bringing down into the mine when the discovery. Other than those though their trip down was fairly uneventful, when they started to near the end of the tunnel though they both noticed a faint blue glow coming from around the corner where the shaft turned. Neither one of them said anything about it, weapons were drawn just the same though.

The dig site was large, at least Matt guessed that this would be considered large, with lots of scaffolding they could make their way around on to get places on the upper level and below. All around them there was signs of digging with tools of some kind, be it the miners or this doctor he couldn't be sure. Jane found an elevator that headed down to the ground floor of the dig so they hit the control button and headed down. These lower areas had equipment scattered that looked more like what you might expect a scientist to have. Testing equipment, microscopes, and a large machine that looked like it might be some sort of mining laser. Matt noticed some more dormant security mechs and pointed them out quickly to Jane as they searched the site for signs of life.

They rounded a large outcropping in the mines that revealed some sort of ancient structure built right into the side of the rock. It looked like there were stations that served some sort of function, but it did not look like they were currently powered up. Matt climbed up into the opening first then with a helping hand pulled his sister up behind him. Together they moved into the central chamber that was sort of circular room that rose up many levels above their head. Jane wandered out into the center of the room to check out some computer equipment that had been set up and connected to one of these stations for study, Matt just stowed his pistol and stared up towards the celling that had to be at least several hundred meters up.

"Sure is a lot of equipment left out an unattended, where is this doctor supposed to be?" Matt asked stretching his left arm across his chest idly, "Do we even know what she looks like?"

Down by these running computers his sister looked up from the read out and started, "Yeah about 5'8", blu-" She stopped suddenly and brought her rifle up to point right at him quickly sidestepping out from around the equipment focused intensely, "And in a regulation Asari scientist uniform with a light pistol pointed right at your head Matt."

"Huh?" Matt blinked behind his faceplate and tried to look over his shoulder in the direction that his sister had motioned, but he felt the distinct feel of a metal barrel pressed to the back of his helmet.

"Wh….Who are you?!," this young Asari tried to get out, so nervous that her hand was shaking causing the gun to knock against the helmet of this merc that had just snuck into her dig site, "What are you doing here?"

A second past as Jane made her choice then lowered her gun so it pointed down at her side so she could answer, "My name is Jane Shepard, I am a Specter with the Council. That fellow you have the gun pressed against is Matt."

At the introduction Matt just shrugged his shoulders and gave a small wave with his left hand, but he didn't try and turn, he could feel the clinking of the gun against his helmet. Any quick movements and she was bound to accidently set that thing off.

Gaining some of her nerve now the scientist tried to still the shake in her arm and responded in turn, "I am Dr Liara T'Soni, daughter of Matriarch Benezia and this is my site. What are you doing here?"

"There was an attack on a human colony, Eden Prime, by a council specter, Turian named Saren," Jane said trying to explain why they had just come across the galaxy to find her without startling the girl into venting the back of her brothers helmet. "A recording was found that implicated Saren and another in the attack and an ongoing plot. That other person was Benezia. We got a tip that her daughter was out on some remote planet digging up some Prothean ruins."

Behind him Matt could almost feel the emotions going through the Asari at his sisters words. First they had come down and shocked her, then after explaining why they had come she couldn't believe that her mother was involved in something like that, Liara had not seen her in some time, but she knew enough not to believe that.

"You may have come a long way for nothing Specter Shepard, my mother and I have not been on speaking terms for over a decade," Liara said, "But I won't believe that my mother has the capability to do something like this. She is a pillar of the Asari Matriarchs back on Thessia, I can admit that even if we don't always see eye to eye all the time."

Enough was enough, they were going to get nowhere like this. With his lightning fast reflexes and the years of training he had gone through in the Alliance Matt made his move. Turning quickly he knocked up the wrist that was holding the pistol that was held against him and shoved the elbow of that same arm in the motion into the chest of the scientist. This knocked her off balance and allowed him to step in and throw her to the ground with hands applied in the appropriate places in a classic judo style. The ex-Solider made sure she stayed down by keeling on her chest with one armored knee heavy on her form and his pistol quickly drawn with a free hand to aim down at her.

"Matt stand down!" Jane shouted grabbing at his shoulder after he executed the disarming maneuver, "She isn't a threat."

"You didn't have the handgun pressed to your head Jane, she was shaking like a leaf," the younger sibling said looking back over his shoulder.

Glancing back down Matt assessed the threat. White and tan typical scientist uniform with the emblem show she was a part of one of them major universities on Thessia. Like many Asari her skin had a blue azure tint to it, but with bits of freckles dotting the tops of her cheekbones and across the bridge of her nose. Liara also had markings that looked remarkably like thin human eyebrows framing her cerulean eyes. Her lips were parted trying to catch her breath from the sudden rush of Matt taking her down and her wide eyes showed the clean and present fear that he had thrust upon her.

Those eyes.

Matt was going to say something, but he hesitated lingering on her widened gaze that was darting fearfully between the gun he had pointed at her and the front of his helmet.

"Matt?" Jane asked not sure what her brother was thinking.

Without a word Matt returned the pistol to the holster at his hip and got up from his kneeling position so that he could turn away from the sight of the scientist. She was familiar, like he had seen her somewhere before, but he couldn't place it right now. It just made him uncomfortable like when you had a word stuck on the tip of your tongue.

"Sorry about that T'soni, but you did have a gun pointed at him," Jane tried while reaching down to help the woman up.

Having calmed down from the wind being knocked out of her Liara took the offered hand and got back to her feet then started to dust herself off. Those eyes watched Matt while he walked down over to the computers she had set up to try and break the encryption on the ancient programs the stations ran on.

"I am afraid I am going to have to ask you to come back to my ship Doctor. You may have not spoken to your mother in many years, but there was a Prothean beacon on Eden Prime that seemed to be the objective of his rogue specter. We think that it might be important to what they are planning, but we cannot make out what the beacon meant." Jane said hopeful that they had not come across the galaxy for nothing. "From what we were told you are the Asari to talk to on the subject. It put some sort of vision in my brother's head."

Jane motioned down to the other squad mate that was lingering by the computers as if to help explain her point.

The Asari furrowed her brows together and looked as well. Was it even possible for a human to access Prothean tech like that? She couldn't be sure.

"You found a working beacon? That is very rare, I would like very much to see it if I could," Liara said now switching over to her intellectual mode forgetting the past few minutes.

"No luck on that I am afrai-" his sister tried to explain as the radio com in their helmets kicked up.

"Shepard can you hear me?" It was Garrus up by the entrance.

Jane turned away from the both of them raising her left hand to the side of her helmet so that she might hear more clearly. Matt dropped a bit of wiring that he had been looking at inside of one of the exposed panels of the structure and came over. Beside him he tossed a look towards the scientist, but he didn't say anything to her.

"Go ahead Garrus."

"Joker just called down; there is a Geth ship incoming, a transport class by the looks of it."

Jane swore under her breath and looked over at Matt in silent command to get ready, "Garrus get back to the Mako and see if you can discourage them from putting down. Get joker on his way to pick us up plus one."

Without pause the Turians voice came back over the com, broken up by labored breaths, he had already been on his way back to the tank expecting the order, "They won't put down Shepard, I got your back. Just get out of there."

Cutting of the radio com Jane turned back to the two of them and motioned towards the elevator, "Let's get the hell out of here before the Geth get in here."

"No arguments there," Matt said rushing past the both of the women heading out to get the elevator going.

Gah the thing was tediously slow, or maybe it just felt like that because they were in a hurry. When the door opened though the whole cavern shook like someone had just taken a hammer to the top of it a few times and all hell broke loose. All around them rocks started to shift and fall from the ceiling of the cave. The three of them still had to traverse the scaffolding walkways and make it up the main mineshaft to the surface.

No one said anything they just ran, it was a life and death situation if there ever was one. Either the Asari scientist was in better shape than Matt had guessed or the adrenaline was helping her keep up with the two soldiers. They dodged falling rubble, leapt over openings in the scaffolding, and rounded that last corner that opened up to the mineshaft. Only one problem.

At point Matt made a snap decision and dove digging deep within his reserves to pull the full brunt of his biotics to life. The whole of his form flared a bright almost white color instead of blue with the strength he was bringing to bare, but he would need every ounce of it. He had been out front; he had seen the large chunk of rock start to fall above the opening that was their only freedom so he recklessly moved to stop it. From on his back in the doorway he pushed up with his biotics and caught the incredible weight instantly feeling like he was going to drop it.

"GO!" he shouted over the sound of the place coming down around them, he couldn't hold it long.

On either side two shadows passed through his tunneled vision locked only on the rock above him. Not able to hold it a second later his arms dropped and because of the effort exerted he blacked out.

* * *

About an hour later in the quiet of the med bay the specialist jolted awoke. Matt sat up quickly gasping for breath like he had been having a nightmare. Beside him Chakwas set a hand on his shoulder trying to get him to calm down.

"Easy their Matt," she said softly.

Quickly he realized the worst had not happened and relented to lying back onto one of the soft beds there in the med bay.

"No offense Doc, but I thought this place was supposed to be sunny," Matt said sarcastically looking up at her with a slight grin, "All I see are metal bulkheads."

Jane stepped into view, already changed back into her shipboard regs and leaned against the bed looking down at him.

"You are a crazy son of a bitch you know what?"

She was smiling though; they were both glad he had made it.

"Watch your language young lady," Matt teased her trying to lift his right arm to smack her In the shoulder quickly realizing the intense sore feeling coming from not just the muscles in his arm, but in pinpoint places all over him where his amps were located. Wincing he dropped his arm back down to the bed and sighed shifting his eyes over to the Doctor expectantly, "So…that hurts."

Their shipboard doctor had a data pad with what looked like the readouts of some scans she had done on him, but she didn't seem to look that grim so it couldn't be terrible news Matt guessed.

"You overstressed the amps, not a horrible thing, but the muscle around them will need time to recover and it will quite a bit painful while their do," She said turning the pad around so that he could see the picture of one of the amps, one in his arm, and the darkened spots around it in the muscle where the pain was coming from.

Nodding Matt looked back to his sister and asked, "So what happened down there?"

She crossed her arms over her chest and answered, "Garrus said he got back to the tank and started firing on the drop ship, true to his word they didn't get the chance to land any units. Maybe we should let him drive from now on." Jane was aggravated with how much her brothers expression showed he agreed with that sentiment. "Since they couldn't land they took a couple pot shots at the mining facility, Liara says that the area was already very unstable and that something like that easily could have caused the site to come crumbling down around us like it did."

Matt winced when he tried to shift a bit on the bed; it was going to be a long couple of days, "So the doctor made it out then? Get any information out of her yet?"

Jane nodded reaching up to push a rebel strand of red hair that had come loose like they always did behind her left ear, "yeah, we were talking just a minute ago. She had some general information on the Protheans that she shared with me, but like she said I don't think she can really help us much when it comes to her mother. The doctor really does not seem to know anything about what she has been up to in the past ten years. Terrible family life from the sound of it." That was when his sister stopped and considered what she was going to say next. It must have been something hard to get out because of the way her expression had turned to from that of warmth pleased to see that he was going to be alright, to that of a mixed unease. "Now don't just turn this down Matt," oh this was going to be good, "But because of how the beacon showed only you those visions back on Eden Prime we can't exactly go over them with a fine tooth comb."

Cautiously Matt answered, "And…"

"Liara suggested that we try a meld," Jane said evenly then quickly finished, "A shallow one of course, so that she might be able to get a handle on what it was you saw from the beacon."

Matt grit his teeth together and shook his head, "Absolutely not."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3.

Let me know what you think and please enjoy.

As always the Mass Effect series is owned by Bioware.

* * *

It is going to get bumpy

The following day Matt was kept cramped up in the med bay and Chakwas was great, really, but bedside manor only lasted so long before the biotic started to get bored. It was not like he could really get up and move around though, he knew that every time he shifted on the bed and frustrated set his head back down. Some of the crew had come through to see him, everyone that really knew him he guessed, and he was glad for that because it cut through the time like a knife. Jane had come by a handful of times to keep him company when she could and to pass on through to the lab on the end of the hall to talk to their newest resident. Evidently there had been a meeting he had missed while out cold about the mission and it had been decided that at least for now she was going to be hanging around while they were on this mission. From what little small talk the Asari had attempted she just figured that she would be of best help to the team inside a lab, and Matt quickly realized that she had very little in the way of social skills in dealing with Humans.

On the second day when he woke up he had a lot more movement in his extremities and he wanted to be set loose right there. The doc had other plans though and kept him bedridden throughout. So he was stuck again for another excruciating day of boredom. Less people stopped by to check in on him this time, but Jane dropped off two of the books he picked up on the citadel on their last stop so at least he had more to do. That afternoon he heard they were in route to another planet, one of the leads Jane had been given, and they would arrive sometime in the morning. If his sister was talking about taking him on the ground team no one had said anything to him yet. It looked like he was sitting this one out. Fine with him, last one he almost got turned into a pancake. At some point he must have fallen asleep because when he opened his eyes again the ships lights were dimed and it was near silent save that dull hum of the engine. This was his chance with the doc out resting, Matt escaped the med bay.

"Exc…use me," a small female voice said from somewhere above him, "Is that you Mr. Shepard?"

Matt squirmed his was back out of the maintenance hatch that led out into main engendering. For the better part of the last half hour his lower half had been sticking out of the crawlspace while he worked on a wiring issue. There had been a sound on the ship since the day he stepped aboard and he finally had some time to figure out just what it was. When he had asked main engineer Adams about it he was told that nothing was wrong, but he was more than welcome to go digging around as long as he did so carefully.

Grime had collected from his time in the space and it was all smudged up on his face, the front of his duty shirt, but he looked to be feeling better now that he was out of the med bay.

"Ah Doctor T'soni what can I do you for?" Matt asked while reaching for a pair of wire cutters that were sitting by a small bag of tools at her feet only to disappear into the hole again.

Confused at the way he was handling the conversation Liara looked puzzled and had to ask, "What exactly are you doing down here at this hour?"

It was late, well past lights out and Matt was working by the emergency lighting he had switched on in the crawlspace. From within the network he was still simi inside of he called back.

"Just tinkering a bit is all Doc," he said working with the wire cutters until he could come back out and set them aside. Seeing that she was not going to move off after a bit of small talk he set himself to sit back against the bulkhead and looked up at her.

Liara was still wearing her field scientist's uniform, but it looked like she had a chance to use the showers since she had been aboard. When he had first seen her some of the color must have been drained from her face because now she almost glowed blue here on the engineering deck. Then there were those eyes, Matt had to be careful to avoid them.

Reaching over he dug into his bag and got out what looked like some sort of electrical tape and asked her, "is something bothering you Liara?"

If she was offended by him not looking her in the eye she didn't seem to show it, in fact she seemed pleased with him just talking to her. It surprised him when she turned and sat down on the floor against the bulkhead like he was, although on the other side of his tool pack with her knees pulled up so that she could wrap her arms around them like a child might, but she didn't look it. From the way she sat Matt could tell she did this a lot, maybe she sat like this when she wanted to think something out?

"Jane tells me that you are not open to the concept of a meld with me to try and figure out what the beacon on Eden Prime was all about," she said looking up at the large drive core that glowed faintly in the light of the dim red emergency lamps, "Is it because you do not trust me?"

Matt set his head back against the bulkhead and sighed, if only it was that simple.

"What did my sister say about trusting you?"

Liara frowned not understanding why he would ask that in response to her question, but answered truthfully, "She said that she trusted me. That the crew might take some time to come around, but that I was a welcome member of the team as long as I wished to be."

Closing his eyes Matt grinned to himself, "Sounds just like her. If she said that then it's good enough for me and I trust you as well, but it's another matter completely to have someone digging around within the confines of my mind." The biotic tilted his head over so that when he opened his eyes he could see the look she was giving him. What he saw was confusion, but also worry and that surprised him. What was she so worried about? "It's not you."

"You have melded with someone before then?" She asked hopeful that she might be able to work out why he was so against it, "It shouldn't have been painful."

Matt lowered his gaze down to his hands and said softly remembering, he could never forget, "It was plenty painful."

Quickly Liara leaned forward upon hearing this and shook her head trying to understand why this was, "It shouldn't have been like that! What happened maybe I can walk you through it? Maybe I can show you what it really feels like? Perhaps…" She trailed off when she saw his eyes; the way they looked off at nothing in particular saddened her. It was not a good memory.

"Not tonight T'Soni," he said leaning back again so that he could flash a forced smile her way, "Met the whole crew yet?"

He was changing the subject and mercifully Liara let him.

Lifting a hand up she pressed a finger to her chin trying to remember everyone, "Sadly I am not the best with names, but Joker is impossible to forget and Tali nearly talked my ear to pieces over this thing," she said pointing up about the drive core, "She in an interesting woman, never had the chance to speak to many Quarians."

The soldier laughed and the scientist looked like she couldn't quite figure out why.

"That is not exactly how you say it. Its, she talked my ear OFF. That's how you say it Doc," he offered with something of a true smile now. It was cute, she was cute, he couldn't think about that.

Liara looked embarrassed and the top of her nose started to flush along with the freckles of her cheeks, "I am sorry, human sayings elude me. As I told your sister I have not interacted with anyone very much since I became an archaeologist let alone Humans. Truthfully I am not very good at," she paused long enough to motion a gloved hand between the two of them, "This. Socializing has never been my thing. I have always been more interested in digging through stacks of books and dirt then going out to parties."

"Plus you don't have ears," Matt said almost questioningly.

To her credit she looked less confused this time and said tilting her head slightly, "I assure you our kind hear in much the same way. Asari just do not have the extruding cartilage humans do."

Matt shook his head and broke off a piece of the black electrical tape, she missed the joke. "Are you settling in otherwise alright then?"

Her knees rose just slightly and she hugged onto them again like she was thinking over the past two days after coming aboard, "Everyone has been kind to me. I am just not used to so many people around is all? Saying things like this you must think me silly, but I miss my dig site." She did perk up slightly and look over his way with those sky blue eyes, ones he didn't meet, "Jane did promise to try and teach me to shoot my pistol. Truthfully I have very little practice with the gun. Oh…and sorry about threatening to kill you with it."

Shepard smiled then took the three pieces of tape he had broken off and reached for her hand, "Don't worry about it," he said while putting one on three of her fingers so they each dangled off for safe keeping while she looked on with some interest, "You would be surprised how often that happens. Really I would have been offended if you didn't at this point it's so common."

Liara sat there wondering why she now had tape on the tips of her fingers and blurted out, "Surely people are not threatening to kill you every time they meet you?!"

The part time mechanic leaned into the crawlspace and used the first bit of tape from her fingers on the wire there in the exposed panel, "Of course not Doc, it was only a joke."

Calming somewhat she let out a breath, "Goddess…of course, sorry." She looked so innocent with much to learn about the galaxy other than what could be found in books. Somewhere inside Matt worried that staying with them for too long would corrupt that innocence.

Matt ducked his head out just long enough to grab the second piece of black tape before heading back in, "We will have to work on your sense of humor. Or at least how to pick up on sarcasm or Joker is going to tear you apart and you will never even notice."

She curled her finger that had the last piece of tape on it thinking silently to herself just as he came out again to take it. His bare fingers hesitated on her gloved palm, but she didn't notice it only smiling helpfully when he reached for it. The last bit of tape on and the cover to that section shoved back into place Matt squirmed his way out completely from the crawlspace and rubbed the back of his hand across his damp dusty forehead.

"You need a shower Lieutenant," Liara said smiling at his messy appearance.

Matt tossed the few tools he had left out into the bag then closed it up, "Afraid it's just Matt now. Or Snackbox, but only the guys in boot called me that on account of me having to eat constantly to keep up my stamina for biotics."

"Snackbox?" she said as if trying out the nickname, "Somehow I don't see that as fitting for you."

He stood up all the way with the small tool bag in hand extending the other to help her up, "Yeah that's what I always said."

Liara took the offer and got to her feet, taking a moment to dust out her outfit before speaking to him again, "Will you are least think over the meld more please Matt? I have been studying Protheans my entire professional career and have never come across a working beacon like that. The things trapped within the vision could unlock thousands of years of history."

"I can almost promise that all it gave me was a headache, that and some bad dreams," he tried to get her to understand while looking off away from her towards where Tali was stretched out on a cot on the far side of main engineering silently sleeping. It was a small ship, people had to grab shut eye where they could if they didn't want to use the hot pods.

The meld still scared him, all he wanted to do was to forget that day, but because of the last meld he had that was never going to happen, "I will…think it over T'Soni." She seemed to brighten at the prospect, but he held up a hand between them, "Please don't get your hopes up though. No promises, right now I would rather track down this Saren without digging through my head."

Instantly she deflated looking down at her hands, "Thank you for reconsidering it."

"Oh no, I should be thanking you for what you did," he said with a warm smile and truth to his voice that showed in his eyes.

Confused she searched his emerald hues that were actually meeting hers for the first time after very few glances during their conversation, "I don't understand. You were the one that kept us from being crushed down at the site. The only one who should be thanked here is you Shepard."

His wide shoulders shrugged and he moved to head out of the main engineering room, maybe to get something to eat up in the mess, but as he passed her he gave her another quick look out of the corner of his eye, "That may be, but I remember who pulled me out from under it at the last second."

The drive core once again was the only sound softly buzzing in the room and perhaps the ship, but at least for now an estranged scientist there in the faint glow radiating off of it felt a bit more welcome.

* * *

"If you can learn one trick the most important thing to do is to try and stay calm," Jane said warmly while watching the Asari, "In a fight the person that stays calm always has the advantage."

It was fairly early morning and the Normandy was still a couple hours out from their destination so Jane was taking some time to try and improve the scientists aim. Or at least attempt to boost her confidence a bit, they were going to need her. Since it was a smaller ship the only place you could do something like this was down in the cargo hold with electric targets and blanks. The shots might be harmless, but the gun still sounded and recoiled the way it should in live fire. When they came down Garrus had been more than happy to help the two of them clear out enough space so that they could shoot from near the elevator back towards the cargo bay door, they had their little range. Most everyone that was usually in the bay had left them alone to grab some chow, but for Garrus working on the Mako for the next mission what had to be the sixth systems check and Matt sitting off to the other side of the bay reading one of his books while practicing his biotic control with his other hand quietly.

"When you say it like that you make it sound so easy, but the last time I thought I was going to have to defend myself I was shaking like a tree Shepard," Liara said inspecting the gun she had been given to replace the one she had. It was a Kessler model made by a human company back on earth, but it was a much better fit for her smaller frame. The kick was not nearly as strong and the weapon was lighter than that cannon she had been carrying around.

"Just Jane Liara, can get kind of confusing because of my brother," she said smiling at how Liara was trying to be so formal, this was a military ship, people saluted, but this was like old world manors.

Quickly the Asari looked past her instructor and noticed Matt sitting reading with the blue biotic orb bouncing around his hand in a familiar way, "Right, of course Jane. Shall we try again?"

Jane nodded and stepped up to her using her hands to adjust her form. When they started she explained the proper stance and where to hold her arms, but every time she set to shoot the more experienced woman was still helping her find the right pose with gentle urges. That morning when Jane got up and came to find Liara she found her already up in the mess hall sitting at a table looking over a data pad. It was early, even early for her and Jane always got up before most of the ship, and it had surprised her. When she asked what was on the pad Liara had said that it was information on humans and she had blushed profusely trying to explain how she knew very little about their customs. Ever the scientist Jane had said.

After she made sure she was right where she needed to be Jane moved just out of her space and watched, "Alright…remember to squeeze the trigger. Go ahead."

Liara had her brows scrunched together in her focus, wanting to get this right so she didn't disappointed the Commander who was taking the time to try and teach her. When she felt like she was ready she slowly pulled back on the trigger and the gun went off loudly in the near silent cargo bay. She looked disappointed, it had hit the target, but registered a bit off to the right of the intended mark enough to be a miss.

"Hey, you think I did it right the first time?" Jane said trying to cheer her up glancing down at the target then back to her. That whole morning she had been surprised how closely she had been listened to and how eager Liara had been to show results. It felt like the woman felt she had something to prove jane.

"Anymore tips?" Liara asked her instructor hopefully trying to not look to disappointed at her progress.

Behind them Matt said without looking up from his book or his practice," Aim a little more towards the left."

It was so level and near serious sounding that the Asari didn't catch on at first. "Matt is just messing with you Liara and being…" Jane said while moving around so that she could stand just behind her student," Very unhelpful just ignore him." This time she had another idea and started to reach her arms in around the other woman's form from behind only hesitating a moment, "May I?"

Glancing over her shoulder those blue eyes met those of Janes and she smiled, "Of course."

The Commander pressed herself close to the back of the smaller Asari and wrapped her arms around her so that she could mimic the needed stance and aim. Extending out her left hand she set it so that the two Liara had wrapped around the butt of the gun could rest comfortably in her palm as a sort of rest. Jane's head was right beside the woman's looking down the barrel of the gun along with her to the target.

When she had the two of them where she thought they needed to be Jane said softly as to try and calm the girl, "Alright…nice and …slow."

When Liara took aim and started to pull the trigger on the gun Jane felt it and halted her advance.

"Slower than that," she offered

"But how am I going to shoot in combat if I go this slowly?" Liara said unable to keep the frustrated feeling from her voice.

Lips parted Jane laughed a bit at this and nodded brushing her hair against the skin of the woman's neck because of their proximity, "Small steps first. Once you get the motion down the repetition makes doing it quickly very easy. Trust me Liara."

She could feel the girl swallow her unease and smile though Jane could not see it, "I do."

"Alright, again, this time slower and keep your eyes on the target."

The bay fell into near silence while the Asari considered her shot for much longer this time, but unlike the last time when the sound of the gun going off deafened the small space for a fraction of a second it registered a hit just off center. A near perfect shot. Specter and scientist looked pleased. One more than the other, Liara was smiling brightly pointing at the target almost instantly after pulling away from Jane.

"I did it!" she shouted in triumph like she had just won some sort of prize.

Red hair was pushed back over an ear and Jane just smiled, "Congratulations," She had to at least let her have that, it was not like enemies were going to sit still or wait for you to get a shot off in live combat. Baby steps.

After they had gotten back from Therum Jane had reported back to the Council on the mission. They had worried that T'Soni might be some sort of plant to get information on their side and suggested that she be brought into C-Sec immediately. Jane at the time had given it some thought, but had decided against it at the time. Now that she had the time to get to know Liara a bit more she was angry at herself for ever considering it. She might not be military like the rest of them on the ship, but she could be trusted. Whether that was because she was to ignorant of the real world or not Jane couldn't be sure, but a little innocence is just what this mission needed.

"Well you better get back to practicing Liara we will be at our next dock in a couple of hours and you are going to be coming with," Jane said pressing her hands into the N7 leather jacket she was wearing, a usual clothing option to find her in when not in regulation uniform.

She looked shocked at that revelation, "But..i.."

Jane just held up a hand and smiled, "Not to worry Liara I am not expecting you to fight or anything, but I want you along in case we come across any more Prothean artifacts. I know I wouldn't know how to deal with any of them."

"As long as you are sure," Liara said still sounding plenty unsure herself.

She just needed a nudge. Jane reached out and set a hand on the woman's shoulder and smiled trying to project some of her own confidence that would be enough for the both of them, "Trust me T'Soni, we can look out for you if it gets tough. Besides we are taking Williams, she is one of the better shots I know as well as Wrex and Wrex, well he is a Krogan."

They both laughed at that and Liara shook her head, "I suppose that is as best protection as I could get."

Shepard checked her Omni for the current time and status of the ship and sighed, "I have to see to some pre-mission things. You keep practicing and by the time we hit the ground I am sure you will be able to at least cover the three of us a bit if it comes to that." Jane said with a smile pointing at her then the targets, "That's an order T'Soni."

Liara nodded and smiled a playful one that tugged at the corner of her lips while Jane walked off leaving her there. Not long after she raised the gun and went back to practice, she didn't want to let anyone down.

* * *

Feros, a long dead world left behind the Protheans covered almost completely with their decrepit buildings hardly seemed like the place for a human colony, but a company had seen some reason to come here so they dug in. From what the reports had said and what Jane had seen back at the main colony they had been through rough times with many more to follow. The place was in a sorry state of disrepair with equipment breaking down here and there. After getting permission by the leader of the establishment the Commander had asked Garrus and Tali to come off ship and look into repairing some of the broken tech. At first the colonist had looked hesitant to having strangers poking around, aliens especially, but after Tali had fixed one of their generators in under five minutes they were leading the little Quarian around excitedly while Garrus looked out for her. Jane had been pleased to see that, many Quarians were treated like second class citizens across the galaxy.

For her squad though it was another bumpy ride in a Mako to try and find the home base of the Geth that had been harassing the colonists. The leader had said they seemed to be trying to get in and get something within the colony, but as to what he couldn't be sure. Prothean's settled here over fifty thousand years ago and even though the construction of the massive skyways like the one they were driving in the Mako on right now were impressive they were crumbling all around them. On more than one occasion they had to use the booster jets on the bottom of the tank to help clear a small gap. It was a full load out mission so that meant weapons and armor around for the lot of them, even Liara, who ended up having to wear one of Williams since she didn't have one of her own.

"Heads up there is something attached to the side of the building up here Commander," Ash called from the driver's seat up front of the tank, the team had insisted that she drive, "Looks Geth."

Jane had to get around Wrex who was manning the gun taking out straggling Geth while they drove to get to the front of the tank. Sure enough looking through the front windscreen there were a couple of their smaller ships latched right onto the side of the building they had been directed to. That didn't looked good.

"Any ideas Commander?"

"Nobody had seen the Geth for over a hundred years before Eden Prime, who knows what they are up to now helping Saren," Jane said glancing down that the navigation map that showed there was an underground garage they could get into the building from up ahead. "Take that next right and park it. We are going the rest of the way off foot. Keep helmets on, we don't know what these guys are carrying."

Ash turned the wheel and the tank swerved at the command darting with a bit of a skid from the back towers to the right down into the black of the garage. At direction she brought the tank over to the far side where there were what looked like some stairs and brought the hulking piece of metal to a stop. With the engine off the tank was quiet, that was until Wrex unloaded a mass shell into a nearby Geth with a hearty laugh.

"Stupid machines," he said happily.

"Alright everyone out," Jane ordered checking her weapon then opening the side hatch so that she could hop down to the pavement. She swept her weapon left, right, center then called behind her over the helmet coms to the rest of the, "Alright clear."

One at a time the three of them came crawling out of the cramped tank. Ash, Liara, then Wrex all sporting their weapons of choice quickly taking a look around then waiting for the call from jane.

"Ok," Jane said looking off towards the stairs, "I have point; Ash will come up second followed by Liara. Wrex you got the back and I want you to stick close to our resident scientist."

The Krogan reached back and undid the clasp on his large shot gun and brought it around so it could extend into full size ready to be brought to bear, "Safer here than in her own home Shepard."

The four person squad headed for the stairs with Jane in the lead and started to make their way up. From what they had seen on the outside whatever the Geth were doing was several stories up so they had some flights to climb. Fifteen stories later Jane checked the hallway, like she had done for the last five, but this time instead of just heading for the next flight she called for the other three to stop. Geth were everywhere, at least six of them scattered about looking at stations like what Jane and Matt had found Liara researching back on Therum. They seemed to be looking for something, lucky for them that something looked it had not been found yet.

"Ash back me up, Liara and Wrex stay in cover," Jane said without looking back at them priming a grenade in her offhand.

Chunking the grenade at the farthest Geth Jane broke cover taking down the nearest with a well places three round burst right into his optic port before anyone of them could react. Dropping to her knees just after the shots she rolled across the room coming up behind a chunk of the upper floor that had fallen down from decay and waited for the grenade to go off.

"One….two…," she counted to herself just before it exploded on the other side of the room.

Jane popped up from behind her cover unleashing a carnage blast from her shotgun she had worked free while under cover sending a Geth flying across the room in many more pieces then when he started dispatching a second at nearly the same time as the well trained solider dropped back down behind cover. Four down.

"Now Ash," Jane said calmly over the com.

From the doorway Williams ducked her head outside of the stairway door and unleashed her own rifle at the nearest Geth catching him by surprise and riddling him with bullets. The remaining Geth turned and returned fire, but by that time Ash had already ducked back into the cover of the concrete walled stairway and didn't even have to worry about the bullets meeting her shields.

Jane stood up and unleashed one more carnage blast right into the back of the turned Geth then headed back over to the doorway, "Clear come on out. Liara see if you can figure out what they were looking for, Wrex stay with her. Ash lets go to the next floor and see if there is anything on the next floor."

Wrex didn't looked too pleased with babysitting, but didn't say anything allowed just following the little Asari he was guarding into the space helping her pick the dormant Geth off of the stations that they had been scattered atop of.

Williams and Shepard headed for the next floor adrenaline now rushing through them from the short firefight. The next floor was not as destroyed as the last. Many of the walls were still up which was unfortunate because it meant that they were going to be forced to go room to room clearing it. Making that known with the needed hand signals the both of them started the process. One goes in while the other hangs by the door to cover the hall. They switched off each time until they rounded the corner at the far side of the building and Jane almost ran over Ashley not expecting her to stop so suddenly.

"Found it," Ashley said over the com coming to a crouch at the corner quickly darting her head back from around the corner, "Large group of them crouched down over there almost looked like they might be praying if I thought they believed in that sort of thing," she said while checking her gun and loading up anti synthetic rounds, "Which I don't."

Yeah that would be odd, Jane though from where she stood over Ash that was crouched. Taking one look around the corner told her that they probably shouldn't go in without the other two here. Unlike downstairs there were a couple of the larger ones, those were known for charging, and she counted three with rocket launchers.

"Ash switch to your sniper rifle and be ready to take down the big one on the left," Jane said while darting across the hallway until she was on the opposing corner with both of them looking down the hallway at the enemy. At least they had to come straight at them, it would funnel them down the hall.

Without questioning why Williams switched over and loaded the riffle just like she had done a second ago to her assault variant that she carried most of the time. She was not the best shot with this type of rifle, but hitting something that big from this distance would be a cake walk.

Jane held her hand up to the side of the helmet and switched channels so that she could speak to the two below, "Wrex, Liara get up here we have a larger group to deal with."

"Aye Commander," The heavy Krogan answered and Jane was sure that he sounded excited.

Down the hall one of the shock troopers got up from its crouched position and looked right down the hall at Ashley. If they were wondering if they had been spotted they didn't have to wait long to fight out when shots rang out in their direction from the unit.

"Weapons free!" Jane shouted unleashing her assault rifle down the hallway as well as a grenade that stuck to the floor about halfway between them and the target to keep them back.

The rest of the units mimicked the first crackling with energy then coming to life extending to full hight only to turn and start firing at the two soldiers. Just like Jane had wanted Ash waited till the biggest one of the left stood up all the way then picked out something important and removed it with the help of her rifle leaving it in a heap back where it had been crouching.

"Three down Commander they are moving down the hallway," Ash said while reloading her rifle.

Jane ducked back behind her corner after several Geth turned and fired at her having to retreat to safety. Upon hearing the word from Ash though she switched back to her shotgun and unleashed a blind carnage down the hallway, but was unable to see if it hit anything. They were getting closer.

Urgently Jane held her hand back up to her helmet and shouted, "Where are you two!?"

That was when the hallway exploded, not because of the grenade she threw from before, it didn't have the force to break the concrete walls so completely. Krogan mass barreled right into the side of the other large Geth and slammed it up against the far wall with a satisfying crunch. There they were. Liara slid in behind Ashley with her pistol in hand, but at least it wasn't shaking.

"About time I get to fight something Shepard!" Wrex shouted down from the much wider hall, but one glance around the corner she saw the remaining handful of Geth turn and start firing at the exposed Krogan. Even with his impressive endurance and barriers he wouldn't last long.

"Break cover!" she shouted over the gunfire and rounded the wall and stood up in the open. With how Wrex made his entrance the hallway was now just a large room.

Jane couldn't know if the two were behind her when she past Wrex who was dropping the large Geth so that she could fire her shotgun near point blank on a trooper that had advanced on their large ally rocking the synthetic back to the cold floor. Wrex saw the Geth go down, but was already focused on one behind a half wall and ran right over it to grapple with it. That left just three, one rocket trooper among them that worried Jane. Instead of waiting on her overheated shotgun she dropped it and drew her sidearm bringing it to bare just before the trooper got his shot off taking him in the shoulder that was holding the weapon. Down the barrel of the gun she was about to dispatch the remaining three when they were suddenly illuminated in a bright blue light and taken off of their feet tumbling around in the air helplessly. Only making her falter for a second Jane fired three more times, each right through the central processing unit on each of them causing the "life" to go out of them.

"All down," She said looking over a Wrex who looking like he might be considering what piece to take as a souvenir, "Careful they might be set to self-destruct if tampered with." The large battle master just grunted and took the hand-off of the synthetic, luckily it didn't explode.

Ashley and Liara were still down at the end of the hall with their weapons raised when Jane finished collecting her shotgun and met up with them. The soldier's training already had her checking her equipment and grenades in case there was a counter attack. It was good habit and Jane was happy to see it, Mat and her were N7, as to Ash's training she couldn't have known how good it was. If something like this was ingrained into her it couldn't be that bad. Jane could count on her. Liara stowed her pistol when the Specter came back over and was trying to look past toward the carnage of what was left in the room.

"Are you alright Liara?" Jane asked bringing up her Omni tool to scan the surrounding area for more activity.

Liara nodded sounding out of breath from sprinting up the stairs to meet them as well as the ensuing fight, "Yes Commander I trust you are as well?"

"Mhm, I am guessing those biotic's were yours?"

"Yes did I do something wrong? You looked like you might need the extra help," she said with a bit of worry in her voice that she might have done something wrong.

Jane looked up from her Omni tool and smiled behind the faceplate of her helmet shaking her head, "Not at all, just was not expecting it is all. My brother can't do a singularity. He doesn't have the control yet, but he has been practicing, could come in very handy nice work."

She left the two of them to collect themselves and headed back into the room where the ship was latched onto the side of the building with the Geth bodies strewn about. There were markings etched into the side of the ship like some sort of writing, only she had never seen anything like it before she doubted anyone else on the team would be able to make anything of it. Off to the side of the claws was what looked like a workstation still powered up attached to the ship with what was previously being worked on.

"Liara come see what you can make of it," Jane shouted back down the hallway to where she had left the scientist.

Wrex was up and checking each and every Geth for signs of life, shooting here and there when he thought he saw something move. Liara gave him a wide berth when she came over to see what the Commander had found. Jane just stepped aside and let her work watching her lean over the workstation and starts to type away. It didn't look like she found something right away, but after a few moments she had something for sure.

"It says here that they were looking for some sort of plant," she said while tracing a finger over the information on the screen in a language Jane couldn't hope to understand, "Saren had them come here because it has some sort of capacity to control people."

Jane frowned and looked back the way they came checking on Ash who was now watching their exit, "Terrific, did they know where it was?"

After a couple of seconds and a few more keystrokes Liara looked up from the screen, "It's called the Thorian and its located under a colony," she said with a sense of dread in her voice. "The one we just left."

"Shit! The one that's an hour and a half drive back the way we came," Jane growled reaching for the com on her Omni tool that would let her talk with the Normandy back in dock near the colony, "Joker come in we have a problem with the colony."

She didn't have to wait long for the helmsmen to answer, "Roger that Commander they have been pounding at the airlock for the better part of the last ten minutes. After you left the colony was fine, but in the last twenty minutes Garrus said that it all went to hell like the colonist just started attacking the two of them and destroying everything."

That didn't sound good; if the Thorian could throw a switch like that she worried how long it would take to affect her on people. Who did she have back there? Tali and Garrus were already at the site, but only Matt was mission certified to help them and he was still recovering. Just then she got her answer.

"Jane its Matt, Garrus and Tali are holed up in some storage building to keep the colonist from getting to them," he said between what sounded like putting his gear on, "I am going to go and support them. It's just the colonist without weapons. Shouldn't be a problem."

Considering her options it was the only thing that made sense, but there was one problem, "The colonist are being controlled by some sort of alien plant called the Thorian Matt, don't kill them. We can probably bring them back around after we take the thing out. My team is heading out now," Jane said while motioning everyone towards the stairwell, "Just have to get rid of a couple Geth ships then we are an hour out in the Mako if we punch it, I will drive."

Over the com Matt chuckled and answered, "Roger that, concussion rounds only. May god have mercy on your squad," he said tauntingly over the com.

Jane smacked the button on her Omni to cut the com off just after getting the last word in, "I drive fine!"


	4. Chapter 4

Hope you enjoy and please review if you have the time.

Of course Mass Effect is owned by bioware

* * *

Into the Pit

"You sure about this Matt?" Joker asked for the third time since he said that he was going outside.

The biotic stood in the airlock waiting for the automated voice to clear him to go ashore. In those final seconds Matt double checked his pistol to make sure he had it set to concussion, careful to not hurt any of the colonists because of what his sister had said. On his way out the doctor had given him some sort of injection of yellow liquid to help with the stress he was going to be putting on his body. It had made him wince, the big bad soldier hated needles. Whatever it was he was going to have to thank her for it though when he got back. Just a few seconds after the injection and he was already feeling like he had lightning behind his eyes raring to go.

"Of course," Matt said over the com through his helmsmen just as the airlock started to open exposing the outside to view, "Nothing to worry about."

Back on the ship he had been shown the live feed of the door where the colonists were pounding trying to get in, fruitlessly of course. Seeing them now though was a whole other matter. Their skin was pale and their eyes were sunken back into their heads a crazy look locked into place. Each of them were just rushing at anything that moved from what they could tell. What they hell had happened to them? Surely it was not some plant that caused this.

The hissing of the door opening drew the attention of the four there and all at once those haunted eyes found where he was standing inside. Each one of them parted their lips and let out a shrill scream that made his skin crawl, but Matt just raised his pistol and started firing. Two went down right away, a third took a couple steps before getting caught in the temple, but the last was right on him. Up close and personal the traumatized colonist tried to jump right on him clawing at the light armor he was wearing tearing out her fingernails to the base on the reinforced protection. For just a second Matt struggled to get her free of him, but like the others he pushed her off then placed a round right between her eyes sending her to crumple back onto the other three.

"What the hell is going on here…" he said to himself forgetting that the open com was still on.

"You ok Lieutenant?" Joker asked causing Matt to sharply take a breath having not expected the sudden voice.

Sighing Matt stepped over the bodies of the colonists and shook his head, "Five by five Joker, heading to the main colony to see if I can find Garrus and Tail."

"Roger that," he responded promptly.

"And you don't have to call me that anymore flight lieutenant."

"I never get the memos on time," Joker said sarcastically over the line, "Be careful out there. Normandy out."

From where the Normandy was it was not a terribly long walk to the heart of the colony. On the way there he encountered a handful of the colonist that were in no better shape, but were no more difficult to deal with. Every time he found one though that wail ripped from their lips and each time Matt found himself hoping he could take the next one down before they managed to get it off. It was just freaking him out. Crossing the courtyard on the main colony he stopped at every corner so that he could check around it for more of those crazed people. From time to time he had to check his Omni to make sure he was headed to the right location.

Matt found the shed the two of them bunkered up in surrounded by no less than ten of the remaining colonists pounding away on the flimsy metal it was made out of. They had been at it for a while it looked like as well judging by the red stains streaked across the metal exterior from them trying to get in. Options? Direct approach. Breaking his cover behind another one of the modular building Matt shot one of them square in the back.

All nine of the remaining colonist turned on him at the same time, "Oh shit."

Only a few more shots rang out from his gun until he gave up on it and summoned the biotic weapon that he truly was. Two at a time he knocked them back with well-placed throws all the while stepping back to extend the distance. There were just to many of them for Matt to get all of them before they crossed the distance and he was taken to the ground by a remaining two tackling him roughly to the dirt. He lifted his hands and tried to bat them off of his form so that he could rise to his feet, but every time he tried in their furor they kept him down.

"Not good," Matt said to no one in particular and told himself to make a mental note to thank whoever manufactured this particular armor.

Suddenly one of the colonists was thrown from his form at the sound of a concussive blast much louder than a usual slug out of sight. Matt blinked and held back the other one who was trying to take a bite out of the side of his helmet with a hand to her neck. A rifle butt connected with the side of the woman's head then a distinctly Turian foot pressed into her side and rolled her off of the prone soldier. Trying to catch his breath Matt turned his head from the colonist up to Garrus who had broken the cover of the shed when he saw his friend start to be overrun.

"Need a hand Shepard?" Garrus asked extending one while holding his rifle in the other. If he didn't know any better about Turians Matt would have guessed that he was smiling, what with the way his mandibles were flaring like that.

"Just this once," Matt said grinning behind his faceplate, "Let's not make it a habit of you saving my ass deal?"

"Deal."

Garrus nodded and helped him to his feet then gave him a quick once over, it didn't look like the colonist managed to break his suit seal in their frenzy. When it all started he could have probably broken through the confusion and made it back to the ship on his own, but the Turian instruction in him from since he was a little one had not let him leave Tali behind.

Back on his feet Matt retrieved his gun and watched Tali start to make her way out of the shelter and over to where they were standing. She was carrying the shot gun she had asked for in the both of her hands, it looked way oversized for her, but it's what she had asked for so he had put in an order for it.

"Thank you for coming for us Shepard," Tali said the vocal digitizer flashing away on the bottom of her mask.

"Don't worry about it, any idea what started all this?" Matt said starting to look around the complex a bit more closely now that they seemed to be out of any immediate danger.

Tali shook her head looking a bit too nervous to say anything; it was her first combat these things sometimes happened. Garrus though had his head up and rifle in hand sweeping each corner while speaking up in answer, "Not sure what caused it really, one second I was watching Tali repair a water filtration machine and the next the whole world just went crazy." Those sharp eyes looked back to Matt then he pointed over to a large section of one of the colony buildings that was lifted by their industrial crane, "One of the colonist lifted that around the time all hell broke loose as you humans like to say. There is a stairway going down into the superstructure under it. Maybe we should check it out?"

"As good a place to start as any," he said in affirmative heading in the direction of the stairs, "Tali you get in the middle, Garrus you bring up the rear. Tali you see anything move that is not us down there you shoot it you understand?"

The Quarian hefted her shotgun a little higher and spoke up, "I will do my best."

"Good."

* * *

The stairway going down into the darkness of the superstructure was old and they had to be careful where they stepped. To make matters worse most of the steps were overgrown with this strange looking moss and were damp, hell Matt was not going to, but he guessed if he took off his helmet that the place smelled horrible. Jane had said they were looking for some sort of plant, maybe this moss was it? Down a couple more dark flights guided only by their flashlights on their guns and helmets they descended into the darkness. When they came to the bottom and there were no more stairs down Matt kicked in a door leading them out into the light.

It was a large circular room with a natural light coming down from somewhere high above their heads. The middle of the room was just open and you could see several stories further down with the advantage of this light. The moss was everywhere, climbing the walls and ceiling. It looked like if they wanted to get anywhere they were going to have to make their way around the outside of the room and climb the sets of stairs provided. Oh right, and there was a massive green alien looking plant hanging suspended in the center of the room in that void surrounded by walkways putting off a weird looking green gas.

"Doesn't look like any sort of plant I have ever seen…its huge…," Garrus said after clearing their six and turning to see why they had stopped sounding somewhat at a loss for words.

It was huge; almost three stories high and it took up all of the large width of the room. Several tendrils attached to the wall here and there on various levels seemed to be holding its massive weight suspended. Matt certainly had never seen anything like it. Whatever it was it needed to die.

"Right, well let's stop standing around and figure out a way to kill this thing," he said inching a bit closer to the edge so that he could look up to the several tendrils up above them they could climb to, "We don't have heavy arms to go after the core, but I think if we manage to free its hooks from the wall the thing will fall to its death."

"Worth a shot," Garrus agreed and followed in tow along with shocked looking Tali. The girl was certainly seeing strange things on her pilgrimage.

It was slow going, the ground was slick and broken in so many places they had to be careful which path they took. Grips were shared and at one point they had to toss the Quarian, but they made it up two levels to that first hook that was secure in the wall. On his order the three of them leveled their weapons.

"Fire!"

The three of them gave it all they had just on the base of the hook trying to cut through the creatures hold. Almost instantly after the first shot landed the creature gave off what sounded like a groan in pain. Beside him the other two hesitated, Matt kept firing spurring them on to follow his example, no plant he had ever seen made a sound like that. With a sickening snap the tendril came lose and the building as well as the plant shuttered in response. It was losing its hold, this would work. Normally Matt might have said something like, Good work, or nice job, but it was the sound of many feet headed their way from around the corner that distracted Matt now.

"Back up a few steps, Garrus switch to Automatic and Tali be ready to burn them," the biotic said taking one knee with pistol raised so that they could shoot right over him.

Behind him Matt heard the distinct click of the Turian's rifle switching to full auto and the humming sound of a omni tool working in overdrive ready for a fight. He just lifted his free left hand and brought a biotic punch to bare making his fist glow blue.

Around the corner they came, humanoid in shape, but a mass of green plant life. They didn't seem to have it all together, stumbling about as they came, but there were a lot of them. The moss that covered the ground seemed to be the same thing that made up their sickly looking bodies and they seemed to be leaking some sort of green liquid from between the gaps in between leafs. This time he didn't have to tell the pair to open fire, Garrus starting to churn his way through the mass of them with his rifle cutting a clean hole from the left to the right, but there were so many. Tali unleashed her powered ignite from her Omni tool and it set most of the lot ablaze. That had the wanted affect and slowed their sprint to a crawl. Matt unleashed a flurry of his own bullets then the pent up biotics he had been saving to send most of the crowd over the edge of the center of the room down to the depths of the superstructure. There were not many left and Garrus was advancing seizing the advantage. Matt and Tali followed firing off where they could behind the hail of bullets the Turian was putting out until once again the building was quiet.

"Gods what were those things?" Tali asked crouching down beside one that had been ripped in half and nearly completely charred.

"Not too sure, they sure burn nicely. Good work Tali," Garrus said switching his rifle back to simi, he liked it that way more controlled.

She looked pleased at the compliment but didn't say anything in response. Matt crouched down on the other side of the one Tali was looking at and flipped it over so that he could see the "face".

"Asari?" Garrus asked looking over the both of them.

Couldn't deny that, the face might be a terrible reproduction, but the thing looked Asari alright. Even with the burns it was easy to tell. Why would the plant be making reproductions of Asari to protect it when the entire colony here on Feros was human? It didn't make a lot of sense. Couldn't exactly ask it though, didn't seem to speak at all other than in those painful groans.

"Let's get the rest of those hooks out and get rid of this thing," Matt said getting back up picking at a piece of that green goo that had stuck to the side of his helmet to throw away as he did, "I want to get out of this hole."

"Roger that Shepard," the both said in a chorus and the squad set out again.

It was a bit faster this time, just as dangerous, but they were starting to get used to working together so there was something to say about that. Matt had never worked with either of their races before. The only thing he knew about Turians is what they taught him in the military classes he took back in basic and in N7 school. Of course everyone knew the stories from during the first contact war. Quarians were a completely different thing, not many people knew much about them. All that was really public knowledge was that they lost their home world to the Geth and that they lived on ships since. It was why the lot of them were such good engineers, out of necessity rather than want.

"Matt you seeing this?" Garrus asked poking at what looked like some sort of growth out of the side of the wall from a bit of moss.

"Looks big enough to be some sort of pod…how the creature is creating the clones?"

"Maybe."

Three more hooks were removed without the problem of being swarmed by anymore of those things, Matt guessed that the plant creature, whatever it was sent them all at once to try and kill them before. Other than its groans in anguish it had yet to do anything else, if it was even capable of doing anything. At the last hook they just lifted their weapons and fired without a word. This time when the plant lost this hold the building shook, it shuddered like every time, but it also fell. From its suspended spot in the center of the room it plummeted down several stories to where the light from high above didn't reach ending its life with a pleasing squishing sound.

"Think we got it?" Tali asked while not daring to go near the edge to look for herself.

Matt reached his hand up and shaded his view so he could look down into the darkness with a laugh, "Yeah I would say that's probably the end of that. Let's pack up and head back to the Normandy."

They would have, really, they were all tired, hungry, and covered in goo that had yet to be named, Matt had called it slime, but Garrus had not gone for it. Instead one of those pods they had been seeing suddenly burst on the wall sending the green stuff everywhere. The three of them raised their hands to protect themselves, not that it actually was dangerous or anything, but mainly out of reflex then saw what remained.

An Asari fell from the pod gasping for breath covered in a skintight black commando armor that left very little to the imagination. All three raised their weapons at this new enemy? She was trying to catch her breath, then looking up her eyes widened seeing the three of them standing there with guns drawn. Matt was not thinking she looked shocked or surprised to see them, he was just trying to figure out why she was green. The plant maybe?

"Who are you!?" Matt shouted not taking his eyes off of the woman.

The oddly skinned Asari held up a hand in an effort to show that she was harmless and tried to get to her feet so that she could explain herself. Exhaustion was painted across her features; she was in no condition to do anything right now. Getting eaten by a giant plant creature might do that to you.

"M…my name is Shiala, I am follower of Matriarch Benezia," she had to stop to cough up some of that green slime, Matt didn't wish her that even after he found out who led her, "I was brought here to be an intermediary between Saren and the Thorian."

Saren? Matt Stepped a bit closer still keeping his gun raised right at her, "You are working with Saren? What did he want from the Thorian?"

She closed her eyes and lifted a hand to the side of her crest as if in some sort of pain, but she did manage an answer, "The Thorian is one of the few creatures to have lived through the death of the Prothean race. It had the knowledge to decipher the beacon from Eden Prime. My Lady commanded me to meld with the creature and to relay through a meld this information to Saren."

"Was one of the few creatures…It's at the bottom of a pit now," Garrus added helpfully from behind the sight of his gun.

"Right, of course, I have to thank you for freeing me from the creature," the commando said tiredly.

Knowing that the other two were going to be able to cover him just fine Matt lowered his pistol and holstered it back at his side. If this information had been so important to Saren that he was willing to go through these lengths they needed that information as well. Only problem was how he was going to have to get it.

"I touched the beacon and Eden Prime as well as Saren, could you….would you be able to relay that information a second time?" Matt sounded like he was almost hopeful that she wouldn't have the ability.

"May I ask your name?"

"Matt Shepard."

The green skinned woman looked him over once then tried to take a step forward towards him, but the Quarian and Turian made with the threatening glances and she was forced to stop settling for words where her kind might have embraced a touched.

"It would take a very strong human mind to survive the transfer of information from the Eden Prime beacon," she spoke softly with caution in her voice trying very hard to not get shot because of a false move, "The fact that you survived at all is surprising. If you wish for me to share the information with you like I did Saren I will gladly to repay my debt for freedom."

"Freed might not be the right term," Garrus stated evenly, but backed down at a raised hand from Matt that told him it was alright.

Every fiber in him wanted to avoid this, he didn't want to meld ever again, but he had to do this one, had to finish the mission. If they were going to catch up to Saren they needed this information. Matt reached up and undid the clasps on his helmet so he could remove it and expose his damp sweat covered skin to the stench that was the air of the superstructure.

"Let's do it," he said grumbling tossing his helmet over to Tali so that she could hold it for him.

She didn't seem to sure that he was ready for something like this so she questioned, "Are you sure Shepard?"

"Yeah, it's not my first time. Let's just get this over with."

Beside him his squad mates looked worried at this turn of events, but they were just going to trust his judgment. Shiala stepped as close as she was going to need until there was only a pace between her and Matt. There was a long stretch of quiet when the commando closed her eyes so that she could focus. Those normally green eyes opened replaced by a depth of blackness only seen in Asari and the void of space.

"Embrace Eternity." She uttered mechanically starting the meld.

Normally the two minds start to join and gentle share information with each other, at least on this level of meld being used more as a utility rather than between bond mates. This one did not go as planned of course as was Matt's worst fear. As soon as their minds met he felt Shiala start to transfer the cipher, but something was wrong. The images flashed by quickly and with each new picture in his mind's eye he felt an extreme pain that translated into a scream ripping from his lips. Melds were supposed to be harmless just sharing information, but this one was excruciating. Was it because of the beacon? Or maybe the cipher itself?

Shiala closed her eyes once more then the three of them watched Matt press a hand to the side of his head trying to get the pain from behind his eyes. Garrus made a low hissing sound and went to grab the Asari woman, but Matt snagged a bit of the Turians armor with his free hand.

"No Garrus," Matt gasped blinking his eyes repeatedly, "I don't think it was her."

"I assure you Shepard's reaction to the meld like that surprises me just as much as the two of you," Shiala said wringing her hands together worriedly, but never losing that commando façade that clouded her features. "It was…a difficult meld, like I had to force the information into place. Never before has that happened when I have melded with another."

Matt stumbled over to one of the pillars near the center void of the structure and promptly emptied his stomach down into the pit facing away from them. After another moment he brushed the back of his hand against his lips and started to regain himself. Turning back around he winced at his first step heading back over like he had one of his terrible migraines and every pace hurt. Tali looked on in a mixture of confusion and worry when he took back his helmet from her and went to set it back in place.

"You good Shepard?" Garrus asked speaking the mind of their Quarian friend. To which Matt just nodded not trusting his voice just yet after the meld. Taking that as all the answer he needed Garrus just turned back to the commando and motioned to her, "What are we going to do with her?"

It was a good question, she had followed their enemy, but if he had to guess she wouldn't have knowing what she does now. Was a second chance in order? Matt was not so sure. Withdrawing his pistol from where it was holstered once more he advanced until he was within a pace of the woman again.

"A long time ago I knew an Asari that looked after a group of reckless human colonists on the fringe of safe space," Matt said working the action on his weapon like he was getting ready to use it. "There was no way they should have been where they were at, but the prospect of reward was too great so like we Humans do they rushed."

Behind him Tali and Garrus looked at one another unsure of where Matt was going with this, it was not a story either of them had heard before.

"She was a commando just like you are, but a hundred years into the Matron stage of her life and retiring from running around the galaxy shooting at things for credits," he said flipping the gun over in his hand so the butt of it faced the woman who looked at it not understanding. "You want a second chance you take this gun and you protect the colony that this creature had a hand in wrecking. I don't care who you served before or who used you to talk with it. All I want to hear is that you will look out for them and succeed where she failed."

Shiala looked like she was considering it, those emerald hues trying to see the expression of the human before her hidden behind the blank helmet. In the end she reached forward to grasp the handle of the pistol taking it from his palm giving a small nod in response.

"If that is all that is required of me for a second chance I will try," she said lifting her eyes from the gun she had been handed right after she put it away on her hip where she usually carried her own, "May I ask who this person was to you?"

When she asked her question he reached down and turned on his Omni tool so that he could signal to the ship that they would be on their way back, a short burst transmission of a pre-determined texted based message since they couldn't get voice out from down here. A few short drums of his fingers on the device and it was away.

"Her name was Shala and she was my mother."

* * *

Everyone made it back shipside without much problem after the encounter with the Thorian. After the Doctor had a chance to look at a few of the colonist she seemed hopeful that whatever hold had been over them was fading away. Still Matt could see himself never coming back to this rock by choice. That Mako ride must have been hell based off the look Williams had given him after clawing her way out of the hulk of metal when they got back. True to his sisters word they had hammered that accelerator to the floor and got back to the encampment in just under an hour. Still that was only time enough to catch the three of them sitting up on some crates near the stairwell that led down into the superstructure trying to clean some of the grime off their gear. Jane had wanted to say something to him right away when she got the report, they both knew that he was going to need to meld again, but all she had to do was tell him in a look.

The crew gathered in the com room for their usual debriefing after the mission, this one having been just a little odder than the others. Joker had made several comments about the slime they couldn't completely get off after they got back. Jane must have said something to the group before the meeting because not a one of them mentioned a meld of any kind, Matt was thankful for that. In the end the Jane gave her short report to the council while the rest waited in their chairs behind, piping only in when needed, then she dismissed everyone to their duties. Matt was certain he heard Ash asking Garrus about new shocks for the tank, but he couldn't be sure. Again Jane shot him one of those looks full of connotation as she left, but he hadn't even left his chair. He had to do it.

"T'Soni."

Liara had much to say during the meeting, hell it had been hard to get her to stop, they should have known after taking her to the Prothean planet. Wrex had even given her a bit of praise for her first fight, even though he was upset she had not gotten herself a scar, what a waste. His words of course. Other than the night they shared the conversation down in engineering he had not really spoken to the Asari other than in passing on the ship and one other time when he had to tell her to wait so she didn't burn her tongue on "Human" coffee. It wasn't because he didn't like her, no, it was the opposite. Matt couldn't look at her without a variety of feelings coming to mind, but at least they were not all bad like when he saw most Asari. Frankly that was what was bothering him. Unlike Matt his sister had been by to see her many times back in the lab behind the med bay, that's just how Jane was though, and it was one of the things he really liked about how she handled command. She made sure she got to know everyone under her and anything she could about them. Evidently they had become so close that he had spotted them on more than one occasion sharing meals along with Garrus and Tali in the mess.

For right now though she hesitated near the door that led back out onto the command deck at his call of her name and smiled politely in that very Asari way. Were they all taught that expression as children? Probably.

"Did you need something from me Matt?" she asked tentatively already probably guessing what this was going to be about.

Without the crew in the large room the chairs were left empty and the whole space felt cold, something that Matt just noticed, his mind trying to find a distraction from this anywhere.

"I need…," he stopped thinking better of it rubbing the back of his neck with his left hand while looking at his dirty boots, "We need to figure out whatever is in my head Liara."

From off to the side near the door where she was standing she made her way over to take the seat that was empty beside his own quietly shifting so that she could face him with her hands folded in her lap form still covered in a freshly cleaned scientists uniform. Then she didn't say anything, she just waited for him to continue, Matt liked that.

"You have to promise me that you will do your best to not go digging where I don't want you Liara," he said finally living his head so that he could see those eyes. Gah, there was that feeling again that made him buzz with a confusing electricity.

Those features not for the first time took on one of worry and knitted brows together, "I assure you that if there is something you do not wish me to see Shepard that I will feel the reluctance and avoid it. If you need me to promise then I do, but all the meld would require from you is pushing that information you have collected to the front."

Right, it wasn't his first time, he remembered all that, but why when she said it in that soft voice of hers did he feel more relaxed. It didn't seem right and it made him look back down with many more questions on his mind.

"While you are going through the Eden Prime beacon I assume you will push a memory forward, a safe one, for me to experience." That was his expectation, in an exchange like this, one where a whole memory was shared it took a while. His mind couldn't be idle.

The young Asari shifted in the metal chair beside him and smiled in a friendly manner, though he did not see it, "Yes, I have one in mind. Would you like to try the meld now?"

"Gah…just…just don't call it that ok?"

She blinked confused at this, a human phrase? Why should she call it something else?

"Al…Alright. Are you ready to…Share…Matt?"

This actually got a chuckle out of the biotic, it sounded so childlike, so innocent and he was once again reminded of how early her race started teaching their children this and just how her 109 year of age really meant proportionately.

Letting out a held breath he leaned back and sat with his form against the rest of the chair and tilted his head over to her, "Yeah, let's get this done. Be gentle with me Doc it's the only head I got."

She seemed to smile at his terrible joke, but said nothing of it only standing up so that she could step up beside his chair. Ok, deep breath, Matt knew what was coming next. It was hard, so hard to keep her gaze, even harder when she reached out and cupped his cheek with her hand. Asari were like that, their culture was very…"Touchy" for the lack of a better world. It felt good. He had one last chance to visibly smile in reaction before she forced the blackness to her eyes and said those two words.

"Embrace Eternity."

* * *

Everything was so bright, like someone had just shone a light in his eye and they were still trying to adjust to the abrasive treatment. After a second though they came into view and he could see where he was. This must be Thessia, Matt was almost certain from the meld his mother had shared with him. The sand between his toes made him realize that he was barefoot, he hated sand, but when he tried to crouch down and bat some of it away he couldn't. There was nothing he could do he suddenly realized, this wasn't his memory. That was when the emotions flooded in. Oh man what was that? Sadness? No it was worse than that, sorrow. Liara/Matt sat down onto the sand and looked out across the water; something made him feel like she had come here many times before, a favorite spot maybe. This couldn't have been the memory she had meant to show him, he could feel the tears she was shedding like they were his own. It was a surreal experience to be within someone else's skin like this.

That was when he figured out why she was crying. She had a bag with her, he had not seen it before, and she pulled something from it. It was a stone with lettering etched into it, nothing he should have been able to make out because it was not in any language he should have known, but it read clear as day. The inscription was acknowledgement of her completing her schooling at one of the most prestigious colleges on Thessia in the field of archeology. Among humans this would have been something to celebrate, something to go out and get smacking drunk over. Why was she crying in the sand by herself then?

"It's never going to be enough is it mother," Liara said, or he said depending on how you looked at it. Her voice coming from his "lips" felt strange almost instantly.

Liara's mother was an important person, hell very important; she was like a race leader. To have a daughter spend her maiden years on something like this had not gone over well with the elder mother. In that moment he wished that he could do something for her, hug her, wrap an arm around her shoulders and cheer her up. Anything was better than what he was feeling right now. That soul crushing feeling like you didn't have family anymore. Wait why did he think that? Why did she think that? Matt tried to grip onto that, but Liara's mind was moving on. She tried to clear her cheeks off with her fingers and just enjoyed the breeze on her skin. Things would not always be this way. There would come a time when her mother would have to acknowledge her work in the field she had chosen. Certainly, and that was more than enough for her to go on.

Liara sifted through the images of the Eden Prime beacon, there were so many and they came so very fast that she would have to sit and think about what she had seen. Like Matt had said the information he had been given in the meld from the commando back on Feros had helped to make some sense of the memories, but there was just so much there. It felt like a warning though, in that there could be no mistake. Reapers, it was not a name she had come across in her study of the Protheans, but here in this memory of Matt's it was obvious that the long lost race wanted to warn those ahead of some impending doom. The name that doom was given was "Reapers". It didn't mean anything to her yet; she would just have to do what she always did and sift through her notes and the texts from back at the university.

Finding the memory had not been hard, it had been right where she expected it forced to the front like she had told Matt to try. Moving through his mind was like swimming underwater and the memories were bubbles of self-contained information. When she reached out and touched one it burst and the information sprung forth like a fountain quickly. What surprised her though was that while this one was easy to find and there were a large collection of memories grouped together in the distance out of reach that was not all that she found. There was another, a small one, nothing but the briefest of moments he had experienced in the past could be this size. Unlike the others though this one was hard to get to, like the water she was in suddenly grew thick and burdensome. To make matters worse the inside did not glow with the same light of the other memories, this one was a pitch black so she couldn't make any guesses as to what it held.

It was a small one. So small, seconds really, but she had been told not to go anywhere she shouldn't. This tore Liara, should she look? She had promised that she would not, but this one…something was strange about it. It fit so comfortably into the palm of her hand, the image in her mind she was using to navigate, and when she popped it she was exposed to what was inside. The black haze filtered over the whole of her form like it did when she popped the white memory and instead of her eyes having to focus because of a bright light they adjusted to darkness.

The first thing she realized was that Matt's eyes were closed and that he was embracing someone, the whole of his form pressed tightly to this person. Then there was the sweet taste. It was coming from his lips and tongue, he was kissing someone! Inwardly she scolded herself; this was just why he had asked her not to go poking around. Finally he pulled back far enough from his partner to break the kiss and run his tongue across his lower lip, Liara tasted the sweetness left then saw who it was when he opened his eyes.

Held in his arms, in the smoky rubble of some city that looked like it was falling down around them Matt held Liara in his arms and the even more astonishing thing about the moment was the feeling. He loved her, not like a friend, not like family, but loved her. This feeling…Liara had never felt something like it before and it overwhelmed her. This was all so confusing, this had never happened! Liara tried to shout for him to look around, to give some sort of bearing to where they were, but Matt did not, his eyes didn't want to move from her. Her eyes, they were looking back at "her" in a way she had never looked at anyone. They were bond mates. It was the only explanation for the feeling the two of them obviously shared with one another. Mercifully one of them finally spoke.

"This is…it isn't it?" Liara said softly quiet enough so those soldiers running about around them couldn't overhear, like the two of them were in their own personal world.

When Matt parted his lips to respond she felt how chapped and broken they were, he was tired, more so than he had let on with anyone and barely holding on at this point, "I dunno…we have been through worse spots. Wouldn't be the first suicide mission i got a team through now would it? I love you Liara."

He meant it! Goddess he meant it. So much so that it drew the other Liara to smile softer if that was possible at just the sound of him speaking those words and it did sound wonderful she couldn't deny that even in the confusion of the memory.

"All those little blue children are going to be upset that it came down to this and I didn't have something good to say…"Liara joked with Matt lightly thumping him on the chest of his battle-scarred armor with a loosely balled fist. The scene was obviously something of a goodbye, a final one, but the other Liara, SHE, looked so happy to have him regardless.

"Ah, well I am sure we can think up something grand to tell them when the time comes," Matt said pulling a hand back from around her waist so that he could reach up and draw her in with soft fingers on the skin of the back of her neck until her forehead rested gently against him.

The sense of foreboding was all encompassing; this was something that they had been preparing for after years of hardship. All of it led up to this, a final battle, Matt's emotions betrayed that much. When his eyes panned up and looked out to the ruined city it was one that she did not recognize, but anyone could see that it was nothing other than ruble, a war zone. There above the shattered men running about and the building aflame she saw it, a hulking mass of metal in a shape she couldn't have guessed. The ship was huge and the army was less than flies against it. Every time a tank or fighter moved in to strike it they were burnt from the Earth without hesitation or problem. Reapers. That's what it was, this was what wiped out the Protheans and it was wiping out Earth. Earth? The human homeworld. Matt's memory finally gave her that last piece to the confusing puzzle then it was over and she was snapped back to the com room with the biotic ex-Alliance soldier sitting across from her looking at her cautiously.

Should she tell him what she saw? Did she believe it enough to do so? What was that feeling they had shared? It didn't make any sense it had never happened in her memories so why did he have it?

* * *

"Is everything alright Doc?" Matt asked when after he came out of the "Sharing" Liara had not said anything.

The look of confusion she had was unmistakable, had she not been able to discern anything from the vision he had been given on Eden Prime? Great all of this for nothing Matt though noticing that her hand that she had extended to cup his cheek was still there. Only now it was cold, clammy even why was that?

"Right…ahem…." Liara suddenly said shaking her head stepping back away from him that hand recoiling like it had been burnt, even more so when she rubbed those fingertips with her other. "It was a lot to go through as I am sure you can attest," She said visibly swallowing with worry, "I will need time to go over my notes and what I saw…ple…please excuse me."

He couldn't be certain though it did appear that he had just been run from. One minute she was here sitting excitedly beside him at the prospect of learning anything about the Protheans extinction. Then after he gave her the vision she had so hastily sought out, she left the room without pomp and circumstance. Did she realize that they had shared a vision she had not expected to give him? Of her on the sand, maybe that was it. It was just something else he couldn't put his finger on so he stayed behind racking his brain over it until he had his answer. Those eyes shot up to the door like he might get another chance to see her run out of the room, to stop her with a hand on her arm before she made it, but he was not going to get the chance. It was the look she gave him, the one she had on the beach in the memory he was given. A resilient sorrow in what was to come. Liara had that same look when she headed out of the room. Why? Matt was the one that had experienced that memory, what could have made her react that way?


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you for taking the time to read. Please enjoy and review if you have time.

As always Mass Effect is owned by Bioware.

* * *

Baby Bird

Dimly lit was the mess hall table where Matt sat. The hour was late and he couldn't sleep, like always it was either his biotic amps or his running mind that kept him up. Tonight it was actually nightmares. Most of the ship was quiet with only a few moving here and there, he had actually said goodnight to his sister just a little over an hour ago. From where he sat he could see the brightly lit light of the med bay still on and Chakwas working away at something on the other side of the glass. Since he was not on duty and he was not exactly Alliance anymore Matt was dressed down in a pair of dark blue cargo pants, a military color, and a black N7 hoodie that zipped down the front and had seen better days. His sister always gave him shit about it, but it was the same one he got at the start of their elite training and he liked it. Despite the hole it had near the right shoulder and the left behind torn stitching where he had mouthed off to his instructor resulting in one of his insignias being ripped off.

Earlier when the table was open he came up and dug into his private locker, they all had ones lining the wall on the far side of the wall, at least all of the ground team members. His was mostly junk he had collected along the way while in the service. Inside was the model of a ship his mother Captained, a bunch of sci fi books stacked up, some data disks filled with music that could be uploaded to his Omni tool, as well as tons of other odds and ends. That was just him though, a jumbled, but controlled mess. One of those treasures though he had broken out to enjoy. In the bowl sat out on the table held in his left hand Matt was enjoying an old Earth treat, Jello, funny if you thought about it. In all his time with the military he had only been to the home planet a handful of times, it didn't really feel like home in the way it did to most marines to him. That said though he had developed a taste for the stuff on one trip to his bookstore on the citadel, a girl had offered it to him and now every time he stopped there he got more for his locker.

"This seat taken?"

About halfway through the bowl Matt was interrupted by a voice he instantly recognized.

"Garrus what are you doing up this late?" Matt asked questionably though he did motion for him to take a chair on the other side of the table from him.

"Thanks," Garrus said pulling back the chair so he could awkwardly sit down, human chairs were still a challenge for the Turian, but he made do finding a comfortable spot. "Couldn't sleep, when the Commander said she was taking me to an ice planet to hunt down Liara's mother in the morning I just couldn't settle."

Matt frowned down at his bowl of watermelon Jello, "Yeah that is not going to be easy. Can't say I want to go along with you guys. Glad she wants me to hang back and look after the ship. No telling what's going to happen between Liara and her mother if they have to throw down."

His mandibles flared with question, "Oh right…her mother…yes that will be a conflict."

Grinning Matt shook his head, "Let me guess. Turians hate the cold as well?"

The large squad mate leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest section, "Absolutely detest it," he said with a healthy laugh at the running joke though this quickly sobered along with his voice. "And T'Soni, we will just have to wait and see a terrible thing for a daughter to have to face her mother like this."

Garrus looked back over his shoulder to the med bay where Chakwas had gotten up from her work when the Asari in question came out of the back room with some question. It had been a full day of travel to Noveria since Matt had spoken to the woman about the meld. Jane had the chance to and it seemed they still needed a few pieces to put together the whole problem. That still didn't explain why it felt like he was being avoided after their "sharing" though.

"From what my sister tells me about her she can more than take care of herself," Matt said taking another bite of his Earth treat, "She might not look it of course, but she is very strong willed."

His friend nodded in response still watching the conversation in the other room like he might be able to make out what they were saying behind the sound proof, well everything proof glass, "Right…right…." Garrus said like his mind was somewhere else. "You know word on the ship is that the Commander has been spending an awful amount of time with the Doctor. You…know anything about that?"

Matt almost dropped the bowl he was holding on the floor barely managing to steady it back down on the table so it didn't flip over. This drew the Turians attention sharply back and Matt must have had a very shocked look on his face because he undid his hands and raised them up in defense almost instantly.

"Hey now don't kill the messenger, just something I heard while working on that tank your sister thinks is a sports car," Garrus said lowering his hands back down onto the mess hall table speaking hesitantly, "Of course I didn't mean any offense."

Coming back from his heart attack mixed with terrible mental images in his head that he would probably never get out Matt calmly finished off his snack in silence while he thought about what Garrus had said. Sure his sister had come and gone many times to check on the scientist, but it couldn't be anything more than that. Most brothers would say that they knew their sisters and Jane had plenty of tells, but he had not seen one on that front.

Those green hues lifted to trace the blue paint that covered the Turian's face and flashed him a teasing smile, "You know if you are interested I could try to put in a word for you? I think I know her pretty well."

"Oh right well J-," Stone still Garrus stopped and his eyes got as wide as Matt thought they could probably go when he realized what he started to say, "Liara….Liara…," he reiterated, " is not exactly my type."

It was Matt's turn to lean back in the mess hall chair and cross his arms over his chest like some sort of imposing figure, "Right….," he said slowly but he did let the guy off the hook. Liara had not been the only person Jane had been checking up on regularly. She did that with the whole crew sure, but Garrus was missing something, "She is a little young for you anyway."

A joke at Liara's age of course since she was at least three times older than the both of them. Garrus knew an olive branch when he saw it and sighed releasing the breath he had been holding having been sure Matt was going to come over the table after him, but he didn't and the Turian had to wonder about that. There was no mistake he had to understand what had been on Garrus' mind, did he just think it was impossible? Or something else.

"Tomorrow is going to be hell on her though," Matt said for the first time shifting his eyes over to the med bay where Liara had just retreated back into her lab and Chakwas was starting to shut everything down for the night.

Garrus looked down at the table and picked at it idly with his right hand, "Yeah."

"Watch out for them tomorrow Garrus, I can't be there all the time," Matt said with more emotion than the strength of his tone let on.

Those devastatingly honorable Turian eyes lifted away from the mess table to lock with Matt, "I can't promise it will be without a scratch, but they will make it back aboard. Be it with Liara's mother or not."

A smile crept across Matt's lips at that and he felt he could actually trust those words, he could trust this Turian, this Garrus. In that moment he wondered how long they would work together, how long they would watch each other's backs and make promise like this. Garrus was just like any other Marine he had served with, he was sharp with a gun and responded to orders directly, but he was just as torn after a rough mission and as nervous before a tough one. At that table in the quiet mess there were no differences between the two of them, the galaxy might look at them and see conflict between their two races, but Matt just saw something more, something possible.

"Well I am going to try and get some sleep before we dock on Noveria, if you want there are some heated gel packs in stock, ask the requisitions officer and he can get you some before you head out, might help," Matt said as he got up from the table feeling the eyes of Garrus on him the whole way. The empty bowl left the table when he picked it up so that he could carry it over to where it would be cleaned later. He was about to step onto the lift that would take him down into the lower deck for some rest, but he stopped.

It must have drawn a question from Garrus where he was still sitting at the table because he spoke up, "Everything ok?"

When he turned back Matt reached up and ran his left hand through his short hair ruffling it up making sure every bit of it was out of place with a small smile, "Tulips Garrus. Don't screw it up."

Matt left him there searching his mind for what the biotic might have meant by that.

* * *

Noveria is an ice planet, one of the worst that can still at the same time support life, or at least what live can be for the most part be lived indoors. It sits on the fringe of council space, far away from prying eyes and is well known to be used by corporations that wish to conduct experiments on the edge of what is allowed by council law. The types of people there are mostly white collar only having guards do the intimidating, but do not be fooled the ones behind the desks are far more dangerous. On more than one occasion ships that were known to have docked on the ice planet were no longer seen again even though the Noveria port authority assures through records that they disembarked. Common blizzards cover sections of the planet and upon their arrival they were treated to one of the worst.

Of course Jane had gone on anyway meeting some resistance with the local guard before heading into the complex itself. There had been some run around about having to get a garage pass to follow Liara's mother up to some lab called Peak 15 because of the weather. In the end Jane ended up having to do a favor for a few people and they got their way. Since Matt was not on the team heading up the peak he and a few of the others spent some time at the shops there near the dock picking up a few things. By the time the three came back from the peak in the evening the crew was ship shape and ready to go with things stored away, Joker refused to remove his new Quarian bobble head Tali had gotten him at the gift shop from the side of his controls.

"Away team is coming in Shepard," Joker called over the com back to where Matt was near the galaxy map going over some messages that had been sent while his sister was away. He hated paper work.

He set aside the datapad he had been looking over and gave it to Presley to finish checking while he headed up to the bridge, " Joker have Chakwas come up to the airlock with a medical kit incase they need anything."

"Understood."

Matt rounded the corner right before the cockpit that lead to the airlock and stopped resting a hand against the bulkhead waiting for the door to slide open. When it did he gave his sister a questioning glance because they were short one squad mate, a certain blue one.

"She is signing some paper work to have her mother's body moved back to Thessia," Jane answered the unspoken question while she removed her hard suit helmet and stepped aboard, "Anything happen while we were gone?"

The little brother took the helmet from his sister's hand and tucked it under his arm on the right side the look of displeasure he felt at that response easily read, "Only some task reports from below deck, they are still having trouble finding the source of that power leak other than that not much," Matt said brushing off some of the snow from the front plate of Jane's helmet shaking his head, "You should not have left her to do that herself Jane." That might have come across a bit more accusingly then he wanted it to have, but he had experience in the area that Liara was enduring right now. No one should be left alone during that time.

Jane set a hand on her brother's shoulder and grimaced, "She was very adamant about wanting to be by herself for a minute to collect her thoughts she told us to go on and that she would be on in a minute." He might not like it, but they both knew that you don't really deny someone after enduring the loss of a loved one anything, everyone grieves differently.

Still there was more that needed to be said, more questions about how it went, but Chakwas showed up toting a small first aid kit pausing nearing first Garrus who waved her off heading for the lift then over to Jane wanting to see to a graze that she had gotten on her left thigh. His sister looked to him once more to try and settle what they had been talking about before she was helped over into one of the observation seats there on the command deck so that the plating on her armor could be removed and the wound could be checked out.

"Commander, Liara is coming aboard," Joker called back twirling his chair around so that he could speak to the group directly instead of using the ship's intercom since they were so close, "it doesn't look good."

Matt moved over and set the N7 helmet down on a free observation chair right as the airlock door opened for a second time. There was a silence, no one wanted or knew what to say to the Asari. Liara was still clad in her armor with bits of purple blood stock to the lower sections of it that could have only come from her mother's last moments. She had been crying you could tell by the red in her eyes, but just before coming aboard it looked like she tried to right herself and put up a front for the crew. It lasted all of twenty three seconds.

Those light feet stepped out of the airlock and her eyes fell instantly threatening tears that she wished to hide, "She…pard…" it was quiet, nearly silent, but in the silence of the command deck those closest heard it.

From where Jane was sitting with Chakwas crouched over her looking at the leg she tried to push herself up and so that she could embrace the girl. Chakwas even got out of the way relenting at least for a time. Liara went from a saddened state to a flurry of steps so that she could wrap her arms around Shepard, only it wasn't Jane. To his surprise as well as just about anyone watching the grieving Doctor, Liara closed the space and hugged him from behind where he had not yet turned from setting down Jane's helmet. Matt had not wanted to see that sorrowful look again so soon. It hurt him to see it.

"Liara… ,"Jane tried to say while falling back into the chair she had been using.

"Shepard," she said again rubbing her tearstained face against the strong back of the younger male of that family, "I just need…a moment please. Don't move."

That confused Matt even more and he shot a look over to his sister who looked on with an equal mix of worry and surprise. No one moved to bother her yet Jane nor Matt. Chakwas just went back to her treatment busting out a heavy looking bandage that could be wrapped around the whole of Jane's leg.

"T'Soni," Matt said avoiding the question she would hear over and over again for the coming few days. Was she alright? He had hated that when he was asked that question after the attack on his home colony so he was not about to be the first one to ask it of her.

The sobbing form lightly holding onto him from behind him froze at the sound of his voice for what reason he couldn't be sure. When she tried to pull her arms back from around him though combined with hushed apologies Matt quickly turned.

"No no….you don't have anything to be sorry for Liara," he said extending a hand around her waist tentatively in case she wanted to pull away.

To his surprise not only did she not stop him, but she stepped back into his form so that she could press her forehead in against his chest. Gone was everyone in the room to the two, Matt used that same arm to reach up and gently hold the back of her neck in attempt to comfort her. When those fingers met the textured skin there just below where her crest ended he felt her relax fully against him like a switch had been cleared and she was released. Those blue fingers gripped tightly onto the sweater he was wearing and she dare not show her face to anyone just yet. It was unlike anything he had experienced, sure he had lost friends and loved ones on the field, but this felt different. Sadly it felt familiar he had been getting a lot of that lately.

"Liara, when you are ready why don't you come down to the med bay and rest. It would do you some good dear," Chakwas said gently patting the grieving girl on the back while looking at Matt, "I am sure the young man here would be more than happy to help you down when you are ready."

T'Soni just nodded not trusting her voice and stole a look at the good doctor taking comfort in the warm bedside manner she had developed. Matt watched Chakwas go leaving the two of them along with Jane up front with Joker that was for now uncharacteristically quiet. They stood there for a long while more, at least long enough for his sister to say a quiet goodbye then head off to get her gear off and cool down. Right when he was finally about to say something Liara tilted her head back against the hand that was still resting on her neck and smiled bravely as best she could.

"Shepard I think I would like to lay down for a while now," her voice was frail like her will could be broken with little work.

He did the only thing that felt right and smiled warmly back to her, "That sounds like a good idea T'Soni and I will help you down to the med bay if you do me a favor and stop calling me Shepard," he teased her. In this kind of mood she was in he teased her and from anyone else it might have failed.

Liara's smile just widened a bit more not of her own accord and nodded somewhat, "Of course Matt."

"Ok then," he said while she started to pull away, "I got a better idea."

Leaning down long enough to snake his arm around the back of her knees he lifted her up so that he had her in a bridal carry, he was sure she wouldn't know the connotation, and hoisted her up so that she rested against the front of him. Smiling all the while to try and keep her spirits up it grew when he saw the purple flashing across her cheeks.

"Matt!" she squeaked then lightly pounded her loosely clasp fist against his chest. He was sure she was going to say something else, but she suddenly stopped lost her smile and stared at her hand with a blank stare.

Worried he had offended her by carrying her like this he offered, "Sorry…I could put you do-"

"NO!" Liara shouted loud enough for the whole deck to hear then flushed even brighter, Matt was certain that if she had ears they would be hot as well, "This is fine…thank you."

The walk across the command deck was uneventful even with the way he was carrying her no one seemed to look their way among the crew. It was probably a mixture of Jane being back aboard with the knowledge that the Asari had just lost a loved one. They all respected that. Stepping into the lift he had to get Liara to press the button for the crew deck since he was holding her up then they waited for the door to close and start down. In that last second of light from the command deck before it switched over to the internal light of the lift she curled her head up so that she could hide her face against his neck seeking the security there. A person looking at him strangely was not something that bothered Matt, but maybe she felt a bit embarrassed to be carried like this.

"Thank you Matt," she said softly right into his ear causing an instinctual shiver to run down his back.

The biotic shook his head enduring the not so uncomfortable feeling she drew out of him and responded warmly, "Of course, I know what it's like to lose a mother. If anyone on the ship knows what you are going through I have some idea. You need anything you let me know alright?"

The lift came to a stop and the door started to open to let them out. Just when it slid completely out of the way he felt her fingers tighten again into the front of his shirt possibly in response to the sound itself. She said nothing though when he stepped out and headed in the direction of the med bay. Garrus, Tali, and Ashley were there grabbing something to eat. They all looked up from their conversation when the two of them came into view and it was only Garrus that made some sort of a comment in the form of a knowing nod of his head, slight, but Matt noticed it. He stepped them into the brightly lit med bay and let the door close behind him.

"Ah Matt, Liara are you ready to lie down for a bit?" Chakwas said spotting them and heading over from one of the beds she had been preparing with a fresh set of blankets so that it would be more comfortable for the grieving crewmate. "Just set her down over there if you would. I have something I can give her to help her sleep."

As instructed he gently lay her down onto the bed and helped Liara's tired hands to work the covers up over her she didn't look at him though, hadn't since she came back aboard, at least not directly. That was usually his move. Chakwas came over holding a little cup of water and a few pills in hand. Liara balked at this and shook her head at the sight quickly looking between Matt and the Doctor.

"Please…I don't want to take anything," she tried desperately to make them understand.

"Dear you really do need to sleep and this will help you I must insist."

Matt hung back behind the ship's doctor and looked on, he knew what was going on. Some Asari followed a certain religion that disallowed any medication that was not explicitly needed, this fell into the NOT category. Liara must have followed this teaching. It had always frustrated him in the past when people acted like this. There were plenty of Human religions that had a similar creed.

"Doctor I will stay with her," Matt said suddenly having not expected to speak his mind so candidly causing the two women to look at him, "At least until she falls asleep," he quickly added to attempt to cover the warmth that he felt coming to his cheeks.

"I still think that she should have something," she said with less enthusiasm this time.

"If she is still awake in twenty you can give her whatever you want. Do we have a deal?

Chakwas looked back down at the prone Liara once more that looked hopeful she would relent and allow the desire of a friend. In the end she couldn't deny the girls request and poked the soldier in the chest stating she would be back in fifteen and they would see what happens then. Once the doors closed behind her and she had made her way out into the mess to grab a cup of coffee Matt brought a chair over to the side of the medical bed that he could sit in.

"Thank you for that," Liara said shifting around on the bed to try and get a bit more comfortable the idea of crying lost for now.

"Don't worry about it, I said to ask me if you needed anything after all," Matt said leaning forward in his chair so that he could pull the blanket up a bit higher to cover her up to the chest where she happily took it with her hands.

Those crystal blue eyes closed and she took a deep breath, "Of course."

With her eyes closed relaxed on the bed she looked so peaceful, silent with her own thoughts, even if they were not in the best of places. Matt moved his hand so that he could place it lightly on her forehead where it met the crest. Those eyes opened slightly at the feel of his warm touch, but she said nothing just waiting to see what he would do. Silently he ran his fingers back over her crest much like you would a human child that was not feeling well only with her since she was an Asari he just traced the tops of her ridges. This caused her eyes to flutter closed and her lips to part in a tired sigh. With such a response he felt he must have done something right so he kept doing it, over and over again with just the faint hint of his fingers against her skin.

"Where did you learn to do that?" she asked breathlessly nearing a dream state.

"Jane used to have terrible nightmares about our mother getting into trouble while she was deployed," he said softly barely above a whisper to help her fall asleep, "I used to stay up for hours doing this for her until she fell asleep."

The tense lines of the Asari's face, taut with grief from the day's events slowly drew away then disappeared completely when she drifted off with the aid of his light touch. Matt didn't leave though; he just sat back in the chair and silently watched her sleep. With no one else around to worry about, even the woman himself, he allowed himself a first real look at her. Liara was beautiful there was just no other word for it. The way her chest slightly rose and fell with every breath made her seem so delicate at rest, but he knew that she was learning to fight harder every day. Those freckles that sparsely populated the tops of her cheek and bridge of her nose shifted slightly with every slight tug of her lips while she slept. Those lips, suddenly the image of theirs meeting filled his mind and Matt had to look away to suppress it. Real cool Matt, not at all creepy to think about a sleeping woman like that. Still, he looked back and sunk further into the med bay chair watching her, he couldn't deny it anymore there was something he truly felt for her. Not some shore leave fling that some Marines had, no this felt different and right.

Whatever it was it would have to wait; Jane had them on a course bound for the Citadel.

* * *

"Liara if you keep squirming we are never going to find one that fits you before I have to meet the council," Jane said with more than a small hint of frustration in her voice while trying to work the small latches that connected the sections of armor that she was trying to put on the Asari.

Liara blinked and brought herself back to the store and out of the thought that had held her mind since they docked back at the central space station. The Normandy returned at the request of the council so that they could have a face to face with their newest Specter about what she had found thus far. They would be docked for a minimum of three days so the crew had been pleased to find out they were to be given shore leave for the duration of that time. Sadly a skeleton crew was forced to remain behind, out of the engineers they all drew straws. It helped soften the blow when Tali let on that she was not going anywhere. The young Quarian had taken a great liking to the unusually quiet ship. Jane had been commenting for a while about how she needed armored that fit her exactly as well as one that would accent her biotic abilities like Matt had. Council busy as they were couldn't see the younger Specter until later in the day, Jane had said it was a perfect time to find some gear for her.

Those blue Asari eyes at the reflection in the mirror unable to see Jane while she worked around helping to fit the gear into place. All T'Soni saw was another Liara looking back at her and all that did was remind her of what she had seen within the younger Shepard's mind.

"Of course, I am sorry Jane my mind is somewhere else," Liara said in an apologetically and started to twist and turn once the suit was set into place.

Phoenix armors were one of the best companies in the business at protecting soldiers on the field, but for her it just felt confining. So much armor, near solid plate confined her and much of her flexibility.

Jane must have sensed the frown that Liara was hiding and asked, "You don't like it? It is the lightest one they have."

She lifted her hand and pulled at the collar of the suit where the hard seal helmet could fit into place and sighed, "I am sorry Jane these suits are just so cramped," She said dropping her hand back down to her hip turning so that she could see her profile in the mirror, "Is there nothing else? I feel like I am tied up."

They had already been through four different suits and Liara was sure that her friend's patience was starting to wear thin. The last thing she wanted to do was to upset her of course, but if she was supposed to be fighting for her life in something she wanted to trust it. Jane frowned past her and met Liara's eye in the mirror and luckily she seemed to be considering some other options.

"Since you are biotic and you have barriers we could try something that has partial plate mixed in with hardened weave. It wouldn't be the best thing to be caught taking a bullet, but it would be a lot more flexible," she suggested heading for a nearby Asari attendant that had been helping them because of her knowledge of suits with biotic focusers embedded within them.

While she was gone looking for something that might suit what they were looking for Jane helped the doctor remove the fourth set of gear with a small smile. This was about as close to clothes shopping as she usually got, she was not a normal woman.

"So what has you so distracted?"

Purple flooded the cheeks of the century old Asari and she hesitated to answer, "I…I was wondering what I should do with the remaining shore leave once you leave for the council. Its been a long time since I visited the citadel. The place seems to change drastically every time I visit."

"When were you last here?" Jane said while working on the clasps on the side of Liara's left thigh.

"Hmm twenty seven years ago?"

The red head laughed, but didn't comment about how much sense that made that things changed, "Well what do you normally do in your spare time?"

Liara considered this while working free the gauntlets from her hands, all she had really focused on had been her research for so long. Any time she had free time in the past she usually curled up on a chair and read through published papers of her fellow scientists back on Thessia. So she worked when she was not working.

"Sadly I am afraid I am fairly boring as humans say, normally I read other scientists papers when I am not working, "Liara felt almost embarrassed to say it, she felt that even outside her own race spending ones downtime like that was somewhat strange.

The last piece of gear came away leaving her free to move and stretch her legs a bit in the skin tight inner suit that lined her skin to protect it from whatever gear she was wearing at the time. Jane sat down on the raised platform that Liara was standing on to see how she looked in the gear and brushed hair back behind her ear looking out towards the front of the shop so that she could see people coming and going through the shopping district.

"That's nothing to be ashamed of, sometimes you just can't turn that switch off, been there many times myself while reading military reports. Still you should probably find something to do that could relieve some stress or something," She looked up with her grey blue eyes when the Asari moved to sit down beside her leaned back so that she could rest on her hands watching the people as well. "Maybe a massage? Humans love them."

She considered it, it was a good suggestion, after everything she had been through since being picked up by the Normandy it might not be such a bad idea. Liara had other ideas though.

"Did any of the crew tell you what they might be spending their time doing while on shore leave?" Liara tried her best to hide real question behind small talk.

Jane sat forward and reached up to run a hand through her long hair, today left unbraided since she was off duty, it looked lovely and the habit to do that with her hand was very familiar. She had her N7 leather jacket on that she so enjoyed and a pair of jeans at least that is what Humans called those blue trousers.

"Well, Joker went to drink and gamble, Wrex wanted to look at a new shotgun, and I am pretty sure Chakwas is visiting family," Jane said like she was trying to remember everyone, "Garrus said something about stopping by C-Sec I think then seeing if he could visit his father…and that's good. I am glad he is doing that."

She sounded like it was something she herself might have suggested while they were here.

Cautiously Liara asked, "And your brother?"

Her friend tilted her head to the side so that she could look at the Asari out of the corner of her eye and smiled slightly, "My brother has this thing about old earth books read on paper. They are super expensive right? Paper. No one does that anymore and he can never find anything newly printed." She shifted in her seat and moved herself so she better faced Liara going on, "Matt tends to blow most of his monthly pay on the things."

Feeling those eyes on her like hot fire Liara kept hers down to where her hands were messing with the cuff of her suit liner, "I see. That does sound expensive."

"The ones with science fiction themes are his favorites, "Jane teased looking back out of the store, "Always had a thing about aliens."

Normally that word could be considered derogatory when used by a human, but Liara considered that she was probably using it in the context of the stories that her brother read. Why had she said it like that though? Humans had so many different ways of taking things that they said. Sarcasm, joking, deadpan humor, dark humor just to name a few that the doctor was trying to get a hold on.

"Are you…teasing me Commander?" she couldn't be sure when she asked hoping that she had read the situation correctly.

Jane looked back and saw the searching expression on her friends face, "Of course T'Soni. You think I don't know what my brother looks like when he takes an interest in a woman?"

Liara instantly when into scientist mode, "Actually I would not be considered a woma-."

"Liara," the Specter said shaking her head, "While I know Asari do not see it that way. To humans, a race with both sexes you appear to most certainly be a woman."

This was not an uncommon thought among humans; many humans felt this way even though Asari were most certainly one sex across the whole of their species. It just so happened with the way they reproduced that they could almost be considered A-sexual requiring no physical contact at all. Human males that aggressively pursued Asari sexual partners were common in places like the citadel and Liara herself had turn down many advances in her years.

"That might not be a road you want to go down though Liara, "Jane said in a warning tone reaching over to set a hand over her own that were settled atop her lap.

Confused Liara asked, "Why would you say that…is it because I am not human? I would understand if that is what bothered you."

Thankfully Jane quickly shook her head and waved a hand off at that, "Maybe when I was younger before boot I might have felt that way, but the first time I ever saw a Turian, since we did joint training with them in N7 Matt set me straight. Unlike some in the military I do not have any issues with other races. No matter what colors, shapes, or sizes." She gently squeezed Liara's hand and it made her smile somewhat, "It's Matt, when we were younger before we left for the military life he never really showed any interest in anyone aboard ship." The Shepard's had grown up aboard a generational starship, Liara had read the background on their files. "During and after our training Matt only ever dated a handful of women only for a date or two. It was not like he strung them along or anything, no, he just ended it on good terms when he could and moved on."

"That does not sound particularly terrible Jane," Liara said trying to follow where she was going with something like this.

Jane looked away standing up from where she had been sitting beside her to paced back and forth twice looking like it was hard to come up with what she wanted to say. When she had it she stopped and set a hand on either side of where Liara was sitting so that she could lean in until her face was in the others personal space.

"My brother has never developed a lasting relationship with anyone other than my mother and father. I am of course included, hell I keep up with the guy everyone hated back in basic, I don't think Matt sends text bursts to anyone he has ever met other than the monthly one he sends to mom and dad respectively," Jane said seriousness plastered across her features.

Not wanting to back down now Liara had to know, "And?"

She closed her eyes and sighed leaning back up away stuffing her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket, "You know how intense he can get when he is fighting,…how reckless. It's lucky it has not caught up to him yet." Quickly she looked back over and said, "Don't tell him I said that last part, "then went on. "I think that when he goes past that point of dating a handful of women to someone he really cares about its going to be like snapping a band back that has built up within him all this time. Matt is going to be all in. He won't hold back and if it does not turn out for the better it could be horrible for him."

Fighting was the one thing Liara knew Matt could do; she had a chance to see his biotic abilities first hand. His sister was right when she said that could be reckless at times to the point of forgetting his life. How he handled getting the two of them out of that Prothean dig site was proof enough of that. The idea that his intensity might be directed at her was terrifying and at the same time exciting. Reasonably the prospect shouldn't be of course. Liara wondered what that meant though. She had read his file, she knew about how he was adopted by the Shepard family after some horrible incident befell his biological mother. Of course that was not in the file. Liara had started to piece it together though from the bits the crew had shared with other another while aboard the Normandy.

"Are you telling me to forget my feelings Jane?" Liara stated as evenly as she could.

Among humans she knew that requiring the families consent to form a life bond was sometimes asked by the male partner. With her kind it was infinitely more important to have a blessing from family. Of course she was not thinking of anything down that line so far yet. The image of the two of them in the war torn city flashed by and she forced it aside. She hoped silently that she would not be denied.

"Frankly…for a time there I thought you were interested in me," Jane sighed laughing a bit, "But no. I am not about to tell you what the two of you can and can't do. If Matt wants you in his life that's his own deal, just so you know though, I warned you."

The Asari flushed, She had been, at least for a fleeting time aboard the ship when she first got there. Jane had spent many evenings checking in on her to make sure she was settling in alright and it had made her feel wanted. Looking back it had been at most a crush. It still didn't help her meet the woman's eyes any better now though.

"Thank you Jane, I will try at least to heed the warning you have given me, but I still wish to try if he desires it," Liara said her smile full to her ocean blue hues, "I believe it will be worth it."

Jane just nodded since the attendant returned with something else for her to try on.

It was a segmented armor like Jane had suggested she try if she wanted more mobility colored in white and blue in a tailored form that brought to mind her old lab coat from her university days. There were kinetic plates covering the top of the feet, shin, thigh up to the waist with matching plates on the backside of the armor. The gauntlets were armored in much the same way with segmented plates up to the shoulder and across the breast, but there were none that linked with a stiff connection. It was simply perfect in her mind for what she wanted. When worn the predominantly white armor with accents of blue appeared to have a coat that flared down just past the hip at both sides, but it was really a part of the upper section. Like the armor before to get in and out of it a series of latches would have to be set into place though with this one she could probably handle it herself with little practice because of the flexibility the suit allowed. Although it was not set up for it the suit was easily adaptable for a hard seal helmet.

Liara snatched the gear from the attendant's outstretched hands shooting Jane an excited smile, "I think this is the one. It has to be!"

It was the gear she saw herself wearing in the memory!

"Well it had better be we have been here long enough," Jane joked pulling the lower section from her so she could start to undo it all getting it ready for her to put it on.

Doing the same with the other the Asari scientist quickly undid the latches on the torso section unable to hide her emotion upon laying eyes on the outfit when the attendant chimed in.

"Excuse me, just one thing about this suit Lady T'Soni. It is a commando suit designed for Asari only," the polite deeper blue skinned Asari said darting her eyes to the human with meaning.

Not getting what she meant Jane paused what she was doing and looked to Liara for explanation, "What does that matter?"

If it was possible Liara matched the skin pigment of the attendant that was helping them because of the blue that was now heating what she felt was the whole of her face including her crest.

"Asari Commando squads do not wear the inner suit liner with their combat gear. It helps with the control of biotics because of the types of amps built into the gear itself, "At the look she was getting Liara chuckled nervously, "It's…really not that uncommon."

"You're kidding," Jane said looking down at the armor under her fingers. "Don't tell Matt about this, or do. Whatever helps?"

Liara almost dropped the gear she was holding along with her jaw at her friends comment.

* * *

That's it for this chapter. Thank for reading!


	6. Chapter 6

Another one edited and out. Please enough and Review if you have time.

As always Mass Effect is owned by Bioware this is all purely for my evil enjoyment.

* * *

So it begins

Dusty was the best word to describe the shop Matt was in. Unlike the whole of the rest of the citadel, or at least the better off sections, where the shops were near spotless this one looked like it hadn't been cleaned in months. It was just how the old shop keep liked it. She was an Asari of course, only a race as long winded as them could collect so many volumes to sell to the customers to the citadel. Most of those that came to the cramped store were looking for something exact needing a certain bit of information to help them with a task. Matt just wanted something to pass the time, thus his section to choose from was normally smaller. Asking the owner for help always resulted in the same response, it's there if you can find it.

He didn't think that he had ever seen more than one other person in the shop at a time when he had been there looking for a new paperback. More than onetime he had wondered how the shop stayed in business but because of the age of the owner there was no telling how many credits she had. The place was expensive to! The biotic was going to be lucky to get out of there with half his pay intact if he found something of interest. Matt was tucked in behind a few bookcases near the back of the store where it was the dustiest with an equal effect of dimmed illumination.

"Find anything interesting?" said a warm voice from over his shoulder where he was crouched down digging through a stack that had just been left on the floor of the store and forgotten about.

Normally when someone was snuck up on that they might have jumped at the sound, Matt didn't though probably because of the warmth in the tone. A handful more books tossed through hoping for something of interested. When he didn't find anything right away though Matt glanced over his left shoulder back at the scientist that was leaned over with hands on her thighs looking down past him to the stack he was digging through with some interest in her gaze. Suddenly Matt wondered if this was the face she had when she was on one of her digs? All wide eyed and focusing on every detail.

"Not yet I am afraid," he grumbled turning back to the pile, "How did you find me? This store is not exactly in the main shopping area."

Behind him the Asari reached to the bookcase out front of him and pulled something off that must have caught her eye. A few pages were riffled through then the book was returned properly in the exact same spot from which she had taken it. That was very much the picture Matt had of her.

"Jane suggested that I find you, this was one of the places she said that I should look," Liara spoke explaining her reasoning then asked with question on her tongue, "May I ask why you do not just download something from the extranet databases. Surely there are plenty novels that you would enjoy there at easier access."

Matt picked up a roughed up looking sci fi book about a trip to mars and dusted some of the collected dirt from the back of it so that he could read the summery. Content that he could get by with that one he stood up and finally turned to face her with the book in hand. She had something on he had never seen. Was that armor? It had plates. Matt found himself thinking that it looked good on her.

"New armor?" he asked diverting from the question for now.

Liara looked at him not understanding right away then gave a short smile looking down at herself, "Oh right of course. Jane helped me find armor more suitable for me in the field. She also suggests that I 'break it in'. A human term I am not familiar with." She looked back up to catch his eye smiling like she was hopeful that he liked it for some reason other than the obvious, "Its far more flexible then the armor Ashley had me in."

There were little flaps down on either side of her hips that confused him until he realized it looked like she was wearing a lab coat, fitting for her indeed. Matt reached out and tugged on the right side one slightly, it gave a bit, but it was surprisingly ridged. So it was armor. Sneaking his way around her their forms brushed slightly and he hesitated realizing they were both flushing at the same time then got around her back out into the main alleyway of the store with his book. There he tossed the book from one hand to the other and opened it to a random page so that he could run his fingers along the coarse feel of the paper, nothing felt like that anymore.

"Tell me, would you rather read a paper about Prothean artifacts? Or would you rather examine them with your own two hands?" Matt asked closing the book again.

"Of course I would rather touch them myself," she responded not understanding the question right away.

Matt held up the book so that she could see it and grinned in his usual way, "That's the reason I like reading on paper."

The Asari nodded like she understood what he was trying to say, "It's not exactly a Prothean relic…" she teased though.

The biotic gave a face of mock pain holding the book over his heart, "Oh that hurts…here I was about to compliment how you looked in the new armor my sister helped you pick out."

Anytime Matt went out shopping he took his smaller pack with him, just a bag he could sling over his shoulder to help carry what he bought that day. He set that down on the counter along with his book he had found and smiled at the Asari on the other side of the desk that was nose deep in some large leather bound volume he couldn't understand the writing of. They didn't really talk much, even though Matt was a regular customer at this point, there was not another place on the citadel to go for this sort of thing.

"Hmm three hundred," she said from behind her book not even looking up to what he had.

Liara came up to the counter beside him and reached for the book that he had chosen, she turned it over twice in her hands then started to read the back. Out of the corner of his eye Matt saw this and snatched it from her hands without a word only laughing it off.

"Come on this thing hardly even has a cover," he complained hoping to get something of a better price.

She raised her eyes from the page she was reading and saw the two of them standing there attempting to purchase from her store. The Human boy had been there a couple of times in the past so she recognized him right away. Asari standing beside him was something else entirely, she was fairly sure that she had never been into the store. She did look familiar though.

Matt noticed how the owners near silver eyes were lingering on his friend so he asked again hopeful, "Two hundred sounds fair."

As if he was of no concern anymore she answered, "Yes yes two is fine child. Come back when you want to buy something that will earn me some actual money." She seemed to still be trying to figure out who Liara was.

Most of the books in the place were much larger, it was not unheard of to have a book there go for the hundreds of thousands in credits. Those were all historical or technical manuals and Matt didn't think he would ever have a reason to buy one of those so it was unlikely she would ever get that sort of money about of him.

He activated his Omni Tool and transferred the needed funds they had agreed upon while Liara tried not to look at the owner; no one liked being stared at. After that was done Matt just stuffed the book away in his pack then slung it over his shoulder so that he could leave the store. Liara followed him out into the busy commons where Matt had come to a stop trying to figure out where to go next.

"How come you didn't let me read the back of that 'book'," Liara asked glancing down at the pack he had stuffed it in, "it is not like I would laugh at your choice in hobby Shepard."

Off down the way there was a florist shop, outside that shop he was nearly certain he saw Garrus, only problem was he also saw the owner he knew arguing about something. When the drone of the passing people fell enough to hear Matt grinned because Garrus was arguing with the Hanar about what a tulip looked like. That was turning out alright he figured. It also looked like one hell of a frustrating argument full of flaring mandibles and tentacles alike.

"That's not it I promise. Yo…you just wouldn't like that one is all, saving you some time," Matt said reaching to the strap of his pack so that he could adjust it as he looked from the shop down the way back to her. God she was smiling, hard to deal with in the best of ways, "Well you found me. Did you need something Liara?"

Confidant a second before that shattered and those blue hues turned out to the crowd to match the fumbling mind that was struggling to find the words, "I…thought that we might be able to talk if you had some time." She paused with a catch in her breath adding, "Though shore leave is time for you to enjoy yourself if you have something, or someone to see, I will be on my way."

Or someone? Family maybe. No his parents were both away on ships somewhere he couldn't be sure where. Did she mean a woman? Hah, not today at least. Had been a long time since he showed an interest in a woman, idly he considered that streak to be broken with her standing nearby. Matt shrugged his shoulders and headed off to the corner store there in the commons that was a little café.

"No plans till tonight, told Garrus I would go shooting with him then I am supposed to meet Jane for a 'family' dinner. Whatever that means," Matt said throwing a hand over his should towards the café he had in mind, "Come on I will buy you something to drink and we can talk if you want."

Without waiting for the answer Matt turned and headed for the small shop. Liara was quick to follow though so she was there when he pushed opened the door to head inside. This particular café had the good fortune to own prime property. This side section of the shopping walk backed up against views of the inner portion of the citadel. It was a popular spot for what Liara had in mind, a place to talk. When it was their chance to order Matt got a green tea and offered something of the same for Liara, but she declined and asked for a juice, of a strange name, that he had never heard of.

"Could have sworn you were going to order one of those terribly bitter tasting human concoctions that all the others aboard the Normandy crave…what's it called…coffee?" Liara said picking a table near the balcony railing that looked out over the bulk of the citadel sitting down comfortably leaned forward looking down at the drink she ordered.

Across from her Matt sunk back into the waiting chair and laughed a bit, "Well I am afraid to say that this one is bitter as well, what is it about Asari and a love of sweet tasting things?" he said while blowing a bit at the hot mug he had in hand.

Those eyes lit up in a certain way and Matt knew what he was in for, "Actually because of the way Asari physiology is we are more in need of…" She trailed off when she realized the smile she was getting from Matt was something less than a look of interest, "What?"

Ginning broadly he shook his head and took a long sip from his mug letting out a pleased sigh at the hot feel of it slipping past his lips, "It's funny that you think a dumb Marine like I follows any of that scientist talk."

Liara looked down and played with the rim of her glass with a couple of her blue fingers trying to hide the deepened azure coloring flooding her cheeks, "Yes well…it is a force of habit I am afraid. Something I will have to work on. The Human concept of stating something as a question that they do not actually want and answer to is a confusing concept for someone that is used to providing answers to said questions." She looked up at him quickly then hid behind a sip from her own drink.

Matt shifted in his chair a bit so he was resting more on his left side then took another hit from his mug while breaking her gaze, to enjoy that of the citadel they had a great view of from here, "So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

The café might as well have been an auditorium full of students waiting for her speech on the migration patterns of the Protheans as they conquered parts of the galaxy for all Liara felt. That might have been less stressful. Within her chest she felt like her heart was about to come flying from her body right onto the café table top there. She swallowed it back down and tried to look out at the view like Shepard was with some confidence to her voice. She had seen it, or some hint of it she thought to herself.

"Do you enjoy my company Matt?"

It was a simple question loaded with so much more.

He raised a brow however and questioned back over the rim of the mug he was drinking from, "I do. Why would you ask something like that?"

Liara tilted her head down slightly so that she could sneak a look from the corner of her eye across to his side of the table where he was doing something of a similar nature. Quickly she averted her eyes back to the view and tried again.

"Is there something between us I mean, romantically, do you feel anything like that?"

And he almost lost his cup all over the entire table. Matt had to set it down quickly to avoid spilling the hot liquid all over his usual sweater in a hurry. It clattered against the steel table top, but Liara only slowly looked back at him. Matt brushed the back of his hand across his lips and looked at her with widened eyes of surprise. That had not been what he was expecting when he sat down for a light chat. Still he had to answer her. Did he? Whenever he saw her it made him want to smile, she was beautiful, and anytime she came into a room he had to at least glance like it was some force against his will acting upon him. So yeah there was something there he couldn't explain.

To get a bit of the hot liquid off of his thumb he pressed it past his lips and sucked it off while thinking of the correct answer. He didn't want to say the wrong thing and send her storming out of the café; Matt had experience with upsetting women. Always two or three dates then he had always found good enough reason to not see them anymore. Would she be different? What if she wasn't? It was unlikely they were going to be anywhere other than on the Normandy together for at least a couple more months, that would sure make things awkward. Still…

"For a while now actually," Matt said trailing off at the end there sure that he had been heard just fine though.

There it was, just what Liara had been hopeful to hear! She lit up like a Christmas tree she had no idea the meaning of and turned somewhat more to face him away from the view setting her hands on the table top along with her glass. Those crystalline blues bore right through his own with the happiness she was feeling, god was it contagious, taking him from the embarrassed half smile he shared to something more of a wider grin.

"I am glad I was not mistaken," Liara said remaining reserved in tone watching him until she could stand no longer and darted her eyes back down to her drink, "What do you think we should do about it?

That was the million credit question wasn't it? They were going to be cramped onto one of the smaller ships he ever served on in his career where no one, but his sister had private sleeping quarters. If things ever got to that level of thinking it could get a little dangerous. Inwardly he scolded himself, baby steps, why are you thinking like that already? Then there was Alliance regulations to worry about aboard a ship like the Normandy, it hit him that he was no longer a solider though, so that was technically off the table.

"Liara, I would like to see where this goes, believe me I would, "he said chuckling a bit while trying to reach for the last bit of his drink, "We just have so much on our plate, Saren, this whole thing in my head, and there is the fact that the Normandy is not exactly a large ship. Everyone is going to know the second after this conversation." Matt said sipping the last of his tea before discarding the mug, "In fact I can practically hear Joker printing up the memo now."

A snort came from the Asari across the table at his little joke, Matt didn't know they could do that, it surprised him into a laugh. He quickly stifled it though when she looked deathly embarrassed because of it.

"I hardly think the Flight Lieutenant would print up fliers. What would they even say?" Liara asked shooting daggers across the table for him to lose the grin.

He didn't even have to think about it, instead he just held up a hand and moved it along with his words like he was showing a title, "Ex-Alliance Marine snatches up last of two eligible women aboard ship. Then below that," he said mimicking by dropping his hand, "Hate group meeting at 12 hundred hours in the cargo bay."

She laughed at this, it was a stupid joke he knew, but she humored him.

"Wait shouldn't there be two more? Or three counting the good doctor?"

"Ah well you will just have to wait to figure that out on your own now wont you?"

He grinned and she scowled at being left out, but they both laughed a couple of seconds later. It was Matt that finally got serious about the topic at hand. The sound of his chair scraping against the floor signaled that he was getting up; he moved to the deck railing showing he was not ready to leave though. Matt leaned against it stacking his elbows one after another so that he could rest his chin on his interlaced fingers.

"Let's take some time, since we have so much going on and neither one of us is really going anywhere why don't we back burner this," Matt said suddenly realizing she would not get the saying, "I mean put it off for another time. When we are not so busy with things."

It sounded right coming off his lips, it was the logical choice to make even if it meant putting aside what he felt for now or waiting until they were absolutely sure. Back at the table Liara watched him move over to the railing and take up a position of thought, at least he was putting hard consideration behind this, but that sort of worried her. Matt always seemed to make rash quick choices. Was it good that he was taking so long to think this over or not? She hoped it was.

When he finally spoke again she waited until she heard all he had to say then took it all in stride. It made sense, Liara herself was not totally sure of her budding feeling for the Human. There was the whole Saren conflict to worry about going on and the ship was indeed cramped, though she had managed to square away her own portion of it. Even if it was a dark storage section behind the med bay it had become like a second home. Then there was the memory she had stolen from him, reminded she probably shouldn't mention it to him because of how he made her promise not to go looking around.

The Liara from the vision needed him, needed every bit that he had to spare in her love for the ex-Marine and in turn Matt had felt just the same. It had been so real; Liara spent countless nights going over the memory again and again in her mind. She couldn't find a reason to believe it wasn't a real moment in time despite the fact that she was certain it had not happened yet. Sadly the most important part of the vision she had seen was the fact that it was an ending of what felt like the best bond she would ever experience. It could be the once in a life time bond mate that was told of in her Goddess Athenes teachings.

Just like when Matt did it the sound of a chair being pushed back from a table sounded and Liara moved to join him. She stood near the railing and set her forearms against it so that her fingers could pick at the fabric covering them nervously. She didn't want to wait. Liara didn't want to put anything on the "back burner," even if it meant some possible uncomfortable moments in the future aboard ship. That gaze of hers couldn't lift and her voice hardly held any confidence, but she wanted to make a demand, if even a small one.

"It is at least worth a try…isn't it Matt?"

Beside her Matt closed his eyes and took a deep breath, her voice was so soft and fragile, she was afraid of something. Of what he couldn't really be sure, but it sounded like it was not just that he would say no. There was something else there. When he opened his eyes again and looked at her she couldn't meet his stare. Liara had her head tilted down eyes following her nervous fingers adjusting the gauntlet connection on her armor on the left side. She looked smaller than usual, like she was coiled within herself waiting for his answer; sure she was actually a lot smaller than him, but this was noticeably something different.

"Of course it is Liara," Matt said finally, in the end he couldn't deny her.

Liara's fingers stilled at the sound of his voice then the whole of her form seemed to relax at the connotation of his words. She seemed to let out a breath she had been holding and a soft smile she had been hesitating to use. Still she didn't look at him, or couldn't Matt couldn't be sure.

"I am afraid I do not have much experience with…"Liara said parting her hands so that she could motion between the two of them while still not meeting his eyes, "This. Never have I really had an interest in a romantic endeavor. My digs have kept me pretty busy."

Shocked Matt said, "Wait how old are you again?"

Liara frowned glancing quickly at him then back to the view, "Ashley Williams informed me that it is rude to ask a female Human their age…but I am one hundred and five. Why do you ask? I am barely considered an adult by Asari standards. "

Matt whistled and turned his attention back out to the citadel before them, "that's a long time to never have a…what did you call it? Romantic interest."

"I was busy," she tried.

"That's pretty busy," he teased her.

"Right well if you are so experienced in the matter what is it we do now Mr. Shepard?" she said using his last name like he was some sort of instructor to taunt him back just as much.

That took some consideration; they could do many things about their situation. They could tell the crew of the Normandy so it was out in the open and head off any conflicts, or they could keep it to themselves. Matt guessed though that she meant the more immediate future. What about dinner? Did Asari court like Humans did? Nothing he had ever learned about them gave any insight on that side of the species.

"I still want to keep things slow, you don't have much experience at this sort of thing and you are not even the same race as me. We should take our time to avoid any sort of misunderstandings, "Matt suggested turning so that he leaned on his side against the railing to face her completely where she was trying to watch him out of the corner of her eye.

She seemed to run it through her usual logic then nodded slowly, "That sounds agreeable. What is our first step then?"

Frowning Matt reached his hand up and scratched the back of his neck while trying to think, "Well what is the usual first Asari step?"

Liara turned a heavy shade of purple and turned completely away from Matt so that her back was all he could see. Dare she tell him that? How would he react?

"Traditionally among Asari relations the instigator of the relationship would offer a gift to the parent or parents of the Asari."

"Wait first step in the Asari book is to meet the parents?" Matt blinked trying to understand, "That's…rough…" Considering quickly what happened recently enough to still be a fresh wound Matt reached out and lightly rested his right hand on her shoulder giving a slight grip in comfort, "Why don't we go with the human custom. Its far simpler and I think you will enjoy it."

She didn't turn, but she did straighten at the feel of his hand digging into her armored shoulder. It felt so good to have him touch her like that. It was nothing more than a consoling gesture because of her late mother, but Liara appreciated it all the same. The custom of giving a gift to the parents of the Asari was an old one practiced only by those that still followed her Goddess. Most Asari if asked the same question these days would have probably told Matt that there were no such traditions among their people. Following the old religion was not as popular among her people as it once was.

"What is the human tradition?"

Matt smiled and leaned down a bit so that he could speak directly into her 'ear' soft enough so that only she would hear it.

"Dinner."

* * *

"What do you think?"

Matt stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans so that he would not fidget after about two seconds of seeing her. After the café they agreed to meet the following evening for dinner since he had his plans with Garrus and Jane respectively. Of course he did not suggest anything fancy, just a diner he liked to eat at when he came to the station. It served mostly Earth style food, and the bulk of the clientele were Alliance marines so he knew it well. Since they were just going there he threw on a button down shirt, jeans, and ran his fingers through his hair a few times on the way out the door to meet her. Liara though, that was another matter.

"You look great, beautiful," Matt stammered out after allowing his eyes to trace over her form and the dress she was wearing.

After their parting Liara had been nervous about how to handle the pending dinner so she had sought out help. There were not many on the station that she could ask other than Jane, since she was busy though she had to go elsewhere. Reluctantly she found Ashley and roundabout brought up the situation. After some light ribbing at Liara's expense the weapons officer agreed to lend her something to wear. Really she all but forced it onto the Asari after agreeing to help. It was made of a soft yellow cloth that Ashley said was cotton, a sundress at least that is what she was told it was called. She was not sure why it was called that when she was going to be wearing it on the station, but she had not said anything about it. Williams was not the sultriest woman Liara had met so the dress was cut just below the knee and held up in a halter strap style exposing a bit of her back.

"I was not sure what to think about it, Ashley helped me with something to wear," Liara said eyes cast down to her waist where she was trapping a bit of the loose fabric between her fingers to distract herself from the look she was getting.

"Shall we?" Matt asked starting to open the door to the place for the both of them.

She only gave a small nod then went on through the door when offered only to wait for him just inside. The place was a little over half full with people sitting here and there. All around on the walls were news clippings and pictures from around the galaxy, most of them human focus, but there was a Turian sports game on the video screens going on right now. Near the counter there were a cluster of people gathered to watch it that Matt ignored. Instead he led Liara a few booths to the left, away from the noise of the group so that they could sit quietly. That didn't last too long though.

"Matt? Matt Shepard?"

After just sitting down he didn't really want to be disturbed. When he lifted his eyes to see the three marines coming over though he halted that thought.

"It is you. Sir, we heard that you got out of the Alliance. Is everything alright?" the three of them gathered around the end of the table, two men and a woman in attendance.

Matt shot a glance across the table to Liara that had just settled in herself who was remaining quiet. He tried his best, I am sorry about this look, and turned his attention back to the three Marines.

"Five by five Marine, just about to enjoy some dinner. Can I do anything else for you?"

The three of them suddenly were very aware of Liara sitting politely waiting for them to finish their discussion. The highest ranking of the three, a man who had yet to say anything, tugged on his buddies sleeve and suggested that they get back to their game. His friend hesitated and met the ex-Marines attention a last time.

"We heard the rumors about you being kicked out of the service and just so you know no one believes it. Everyone around here remembers what the Shepard's did in the war. You need anything you ask a Marine stationed here for Alexander. They will know where to find me." With a small nod the three of them gave salutes and smiles of thanks for the meeting. Then with some urging the three of them left the table.

Matt reached for a menu and sat back into the booth with a tired sigh eyes only peeking over the top of the trifold to see the expression of Liara's face.

"Does that sort of thing happen often?" She asked not looking up from the menu she was going over like it was some sort of relic of text.

"Ever since the Blitz, I am sure you heard about it, my sister and I were given medals for valor," Matt smirked some remembering looking back to his own menu, "Well she was, I didn't attend. To many long speeches to sit through for me."

Liara leaned forward into the booth and set the menu flat down on the table to so that they both could see her own, "I have to say that I am not sure what half of these things are. Earth style food you said?"

He had to shift forward in his seat as well to help her by setting a couple fingers down on the lighter side of the menu, "You are probably going to want to stay in this area. Less 'Rich' food there not sure you are ready for some of the usual Human specialties."

She had been eyeing the pizza under the local favorite section of the menu, many times she had heard humans talking about the dish, but Matt was probably right best to stay away from anything she couldn't handle easily. The section he had suggested was mostly styles of salad and fish, she did love fish, and did he guess that? A quick glance up from the menu showed her that he was looking at his own again while smiling, Matt was enjoying himself. It filled her with surprising warmth to know that.

A woman came by dressed in the diner's uniform and took their drink orders, Matt wanted tea and Liara demanded to try it as well. She watched just after the woman left as he started to dig through his pants pocket for something. It was a small pouch of purple velvet contained by a small rope of golden color. Instantly she recognized it for what it was.

"After we parted ways yesterday I got you something from one of the shops," Matt said pushing the small pouch across to her, "It's nothing much, but I thought you might like it."

Liara's delicate blue fingers picked the present up from the table top and held it cautiously, "Are you aware of this style of wrapping?"

Matt nodded shrugging his shoulders, "Yeah Asari style for giving something of importance."

She unwrapped the small package and dumped its contents out onto the palm of her right hand. It was a stone, no larger than her thumb made up of a pure white color. It had not been what she expected and thus she looked up to him questionably. Liara set the bag aside and rolled the small stone over in her fingers a few times. What was its meaning?

"I know how some Asari follow a teaching that states all is one, that all things in the universe are connected. So that when someone dies they return to that mix of energy that connects everything," Matt said trying to explain hoping he was not sounding terribly idiotic. "It's a sending stone, it dissolves in water leaving no trace of it after a few seconds. With how your mother…"

"Right, of course," Liara cut him off suddenly understanding the meaning for the stone.

Now that she knew that though she looked it in another light, how did he know all that? This was a thoughtful gift for one to give. Especially given the recent events, remembering her mother made her want to tear up, but luckily she was able to avoid that by squeezing her fingers around the stone and offering a small smile to Matt.

"Thank you, I mean that Matt." Liara said fighting back the emotion.

Not able to think about that for much longer she quickly put it carefully back into the bag he had given it to her in and set it aside of them on the table top. There was a question she wanted to ask, one she had been compelled to ask since the first time that she had seen him and it didn't have anything to do with her feelings. It had to wait though because of the returning waitress with their drinks to take their order. Matt got something that was called a burger and Liara stated that she would try the grilled salmon. It must have been a good choice because Matt made a comment that he really enjoyed that dish. It made her preen knowing she had just learned something more about him. Still the waitress left and Liara finally asked her question.

"Matt can you tell me why you seem to know more than you should about the Asari?" she sounded worried he would not share, or even that she might get an aggravated response out of him, but she never looked away, "I have seen the way you use your biotics, it's not like any human I know. You meditate like us; you know about our religion, there is even the way you wrapped my present. All decidedly Asari."

There was that look again, she saw it before on the ship a couple of times, he was considering a way to deflect away from the topic. When they got back from Feros he had only given his report to Jane, Garrus and Tali had told her to ask him herself only she felt it was not the time to. Please don't lie to green eyes turned away from her, past her to where the game was being played then returned, they were serious, but not angry.

"That's a story I do not tell very often Liara." His voice was cold as ice and he wondered if she had figured anything else out herself.

"Please, I would really like to hear it," she said hopefully reaching a hand across the table to cover up the back of one of his own.

Those eyes darted down to the hand that was covered and the hardened biotic sighed relaxing after the touch. Of course he would tell her, if they wanted to get anywhere he needed to. When he looked back up he tried to look less pained and he told the story.

"By now you know that I was adopted by the Shepard family, what you do not know is that I was first adopted by an Asari. Hell until I was seven I didn't even know that when Asari had children they didn't look like me. All I saw was my mother and never questioned it," Matt flipped the hand that was covered by her own over and curled his fingers. He had to grin somberly when he felt her returning the gesture. "There is a planet out on the edge of council space, terminus now, that is on the edge of dark space. Not many people going out there ever, but they found a certain mineral there. A rare one putting off massive amounts of energy and a company sent out a colony team to look into it. Twenty humans with an Asari commando along to keep the peace, on the first day they were unpacking on the desert planet and I just came walking up out of a dust storm. Couldn't have been more than two or three."

Across from him Liara listened intently not even moving her head to interrupt him. The idea of a child surviving at all on such a planet didn't make much sense.

"Shala found me first, the Asari commando, and took me in. They were not supposed to return for several years, but when the first resupply ship came she said that she had adopted me. Of course I don't remember much about those years, rarely do humans remember that early. Near my twelfth birthday the colony was raided by Batarian slavers. It was fairly common back then for colonies on the edge of space to be attacked like that. " he swallowed hard like this next part was the reason he didn't tell the story much and went on after returning his eyes to her own waiting blue, "When it became clear that the colony was going to be killed or captured my mother took me into our modular home and melded with me." He raised a hand when Liara started to open her mouth so that he could cut her off, "I know it's a bad idea for Asari to meld with humans that young, but she was in an impossible situation. There was not a chance to have a deep meld so instead she tried to impart all of her combat experience on me that she could so that I might survive and look out for myself. Reluctantly she got me into a crawl space to hide."

After a lengthy pause Liara spoke up and had to know, "And your mother?"

Matt looked away down at the table and pulled his hand back from her own so that he could grip the edge of the surface tightly, "They shot her at least thats what I heard from the crawl space. Never have seen her again, two days later I came out of my hiding spot and two weeks later after that Alliance arrived. Mrs. Shepard was on that ship. The story you know after that."

"How did you get to the planet in the first place?"

"No idea."

The Asari sat back against the booth and looked down at the table much like Matt was considering what she had been told. It was a terrible story; no child should have undergone something like that. The idea that he survived at all was shocking, Batarians were a harsh race that one did not want to cross too often. Liara wanted to reach out for him again, to hold him, but she guessed that it was not the time for that sort of comfort. Instead she did the only thing she could.

"Thank you for telling me Matt," she said softly tilting her head up just enough to see the expression on his face.

Across from her Matt shook his head and reached for his drink so that he could hide behind it. After he had his fill he set it aside and sighed, "You needed to know and I am glad that you do. There is not any cause for concern though, its way in the past so you don't need to pity me or anything alright?"

Those blue hues widened just slightly at the jab at the end of his statement about not wanting to be coddled, she quickly pushed that aside, "Of course not Matt. I don't see you any differently than before you told me. Please believe that."

"Right," wanting to change the subject he pulled out the dessert menu from the side of the table and pushed it right in front of her, "You are going to want to try the pie after the meal."

She looked at him cautiously, "Pie?" Something she had never tried before. A human food.

"Yeah, the apple one," Matt said managing to crack a smile again the moment of bitter memories being left behind, "Trust me."

* * *

It was a quiet walk back to the apartment district assigned to Alliance personnel. Most of the crew was assigned in this block to personal apartments for shore leave, something to help them relax, as well as any specialist aboard ship. The streets were getting quieter by the minute and Matt had insisted that he walk her back to her own. Liara of course smiled and agreed. Neither one of them really said anything on the short walk back to the complex. Liara had tried the pie like Matt had suggested and loved it instantly. She even tried to ask the waitress for some sort of recipe for it, but she was assured by Matt that she could pick it up on the extranet easily enough. Her actions had been embarrassing in retrospect; she wouldn't have traded the memory for anything though.

They stepped off the elevator to the requested floor; each floor had four apartments for reservation. Matt's was on the ground floor and they had passed it, he said he wanted to see her the whole way though. The both of them were content with the silence more than anything because of how quickly their minds were working. Matt was wondering if the dinner had been acceptable to an Asari, he knew that traditionally Thessia was more…high class? If that made any sense it at all. Liara on the other hand couldn't help, but remember what Jane had said about her brothers romantic partners in the past not making it past a handful of dates. This had been just one, did the café count? That would mean two. Worriedly she never looked at him the whole walk back until they stood right by her door.

"Jane is right next door right?" Matt said cutting the silence between them like a knife.

Liara quickly looked to the next door and nodded her digits returning to the fabric of the borrowed dress so that she could nervously clutch it again, "Yeah that one there. Like I told you she is looking out for me as best she can."

"Thank you for coming out with me," Matt said stuffing his left hand into the pocket of his jeans while the other tugged on the bottom hem of his shirt a bit with just as many nerves, "I enjoyed it."

This should have helped to calm the nerves of the Asari, it was an omission of enjoyment after all, still her nerves only wound tighter.

"As did I…,"she said letting her voice linger in the air not sure what to say, should she ask him for another dinner? She desperately wanted to know how he felt. Those words in her head thundering 'he does not really hang on to anyone'.

When Matt didn't say anything else Liara turned to her rented room and pressed her palm to the scanner so that the door unlocked and slid open for her. Since she had her back to him Matt thankfully couldn't see the worry plastered across her features, she needed to get inside quickly or risk breaking right there. It did not make sense, she had seen the memory, and she had felt how they would one day feel about each other. What was going on?

"Goodnight Matt," she said dropping her hand from the scanner so that she could move inside her voice unable to hide the sadness it felt at the self-imposed realization. It had not been real what she saw, it had been some sort of projected thought mixed within the meld of her own.

Fingers brushed against her skin through the soft fabric of her dress at her left hip and she froze Matt just gently held her there only speaking when he knew she was not going to pull away from him. Like her he had his own set of issues, it didn't make sense how he felt so much for her, how quickly it had all come about. Why did everything about her seem so familiar to him? At dinner and earlier in the day he had gotten close enough for the perfume she wore to float past his senses. It was intoxicating. Not because of the certain smell, but because he found he knew it, like a favorite scent found after a long time without it.

"Wait," a single one word statement was all the warning he gave her.

That grip softened and he spread his hand across her lower back so that he could turn her and pull her into him. Their eyes met and the questions behind them melted away, they didn't matter, they never really did. Dark azure lips parted to say something; it was something Matt silenced with the feel of his hand tracing up Liara's back. There was a fire under his fingers, she was so warm, and her skin felt unlike anything he had ever touched where it was not covered by the soft cotton dress. It was textured with little bumps like human goose bumps everywhere though still completely smooth under his fingers. Those bright blue eyes closed when his fingers got to the back her neck and her lips expelled the softest of sounds in pleasure at his attention. Without hesitation and without question in his mind Matt kissed her. Not roughly, or with passion. They shared an embrace that was more about searching the other than anything else. She was soft and Matt wouldn't be able to get the taste off his mind for days after, to Liara Matt was firm yet compassionate.

"Mmm…"Liara managed when Matt pulled far enough away to brush his lips across her own, "That was…unexpected. I was worried you were not as interested as I thought."

He managed to shake his head just slightly then he peeled back his lips enough to trap her lower lips teasingly for an instant, "That is not the issue I am having Liara. I am dangerously interested. The effect you have on me is amazing and terrifying at the same time."

At the feel of his teeth on her tender lower lip her whole form arched and curled against him, she liked that, "You do not have to worry Matt, I am not going to break so easily and I am most certainly not about to hurt you." Her voice was thick and if she had been in her right mind she probably would not have recognized it in such a sultry lowered tone.

Behind her Matt curled the tips of his fingers at the back of her neck and sighed against her lips softly. The invitation was there, it would be so easy to fall into, they couldn't though, not right now. There would be time for that in the future. They both needed a good night's sleep and time to think this whole thing over more.

"We have a big day tomorrow…"he said letting on that he wanted to wait for 'this' while still wanting her to know that he was in no way running from it.

That side of her snapped back into place out of sight and mind until she let it out again. Liara pulled slightly away, as much as his gentle hold would allow and she smiled up at him not near his height only coming up to his chin. The hands she had set on his chest when he gently guided her gripped slightly into the shirt he wore thinking about the underlining meaning to his words. It was too early; she knew that, something had gotten into her she didn't understand just yet though.

"I will see you aboard?" she asked hopeful that they would not just go back to being crewmates once aboard ship in the morning.

Matt pulled his hand back and cupped her cheek so that he could brush her skin softly with the pad of his thumb, "You will be hard pressed to keep me away during downtime," he joked teasing her to the point that her blush returned behind the freckles that painted her cheekbones. "Goodnight Liara."

Relenting she freed his shirt and reluctantly pulled away from his warm palm cupping her face to step back into the rented apartment, "Goodnight Matt."

The door closed and suddenly they were both alone, each staring at the barrier thinking the same thing.

What am I in for?

* * *

Another chapter finished. What did you think?

Also if you follow my other story Son of the North I have not given up on you! The first arc is finished here just have you edit the remaining chapters so I will be putting up another chapter of the Sekirei story soon so please look forward to it.


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